CENTENNIAL, Colo. (KDVR) — Police say the man wanted in the killing of his ex-girlfriend at an Aurora church went on a crime spree Wednesday afternoon before confronting police, who shot and killed him.
According to the Aurora Police Department, Jose De Jesus Montoya Villa began a crime spree around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday in a parking lot at 820 N. Dayton St., where he fired multiple shots and wounded a 26-year-old man. Police described it as a “chaotic scene” that set off a “spree” of violence.
“They stopped a violent individual,” Aurora Police spokesperson Matthew Longshore said.
After opening fire, the suspect carjacked a driver at gunpoint in the same parking lot, then later was involved in a hit-and-run crash around 3:57 p.m. at East 13th Avenue and North Dayton Street. About 10 minutes later, around 4:10 p.m., he did an armed robbery at a liquor store at 728 N. Peoria St. No one there was hurt.
The suspect then traveled on Interstate 225 and exited on Parker Road, carjacking another driver at gunpoint at 4:30 p.m. At this point, Longshore said, officers were converging on the area.
At about 4:40 p.m., two patrol officers recognized the vehicle turning eastbound onto Jamison Avenue: “The officers activated their emergency lights and siren, the vehicle stopped, and shots were fired,” APD stated in a news release. “The suspect was then transported to the hospital where he died from his injuries. There were no injuries to any of the officers. A gun was recovered from the scene.”
Longshore said it’s unclear whether the suspect shot at police officers.
“The two Aurora Police Officers who fired their weapons were equipped with department-issued body cameras, which will be used as part of this ongoing investigation,” the police news release stated. “They have both been placed on paid administrative leave.”
The 26-year-old man shot by the suspect suffered non-life-threatening wounds.
Aurora Police is investigating the crime spree, while the suspect’s killing by police will be handled by the 18th Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team.
“I am extremely relieved that my officers were not injured this evening,” Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson tweeted about the incident. “They stopped a dangerous criminal from further victimizing our community.”
The 31-year-old man had been wanted on first-degree murder since the Feb. 4 shooting at Iglesia Faro De Luz. He shot and killed an ex-girlfriend and shot and wounded two other people.
The family of Adela Madrid, who died in the shooting, said she was a mother of two, was active at the church and was a frontline healthcare worker who graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Watch the full news conference with the Aurora Police Department on the FOX31 NOW.