AURORA, Colo. — Aurora police shot and killed an 18-year-old man — identified Wednesday as Jose David Guillen Socorro — they said shot multiple rounds at officers during a standoff on the city’s west side early Sunday morning.
The shooting occurred around 1 a.m. at the Arboreta Apartment complex in the 1900 block of S. Vaughn Way, according to the Aurora Police Department. No officers were injured.
The incident began hours earlier when police were called to the complex on a report concerning an argument between multiple people, all who lived in the same apartment, including Socorro, who was armed with a handgun.
A 911 caller told police that Socorro assaulted his mother and threatened a roommate with the firearm before returning inside the apartment building with the female victim, police said in a news release.
"Our officers received a radio call for help from a person, actually two individuals, who called our police department and Aurora 911, and said that there was an individual who was armed inside of an apartment building, and this individual had beaten his mother profusely," said Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain during a press conference Monday.
After officers arrived on scene, police said a hostage negotiation team was able to facilitate the release of the mother without further injury.
A short time later, police said the suspect appeared in a doorway and fired multiple shots at officers. One officer returned fire, striking Socorro, according to police.
The suspect was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced deceased. The Arapahoe County Coroner’s Office classified his death as a homicide.
The violence shocked neighbors Denver7 spoke to.
"I’ve lived here two years, three years. I’ve never seen this. It’s the first time I’ve seen this," said Daniel Perez, whose kids were upstairs in bed on the right side of the apartment building while bullets were flying on the other side.
"It seemed like a really nice, safe neighborhood to be in," said Cheyenne Behrend, who moved to the complex less than two months ago with her wife.
Police said the involved officer had been placed on paid administrative leave per department policy. The 18th Judicial Critical Incident Response Team is investigating the officer-involved shooting.
"If you’re going to threaten somebody else’s life, you must know yours is going to be in some kind of danger by the police force. They’re doing their job. That’s what they’re supposed to do, keep the neighborhood safe," Behrend said.
Police said on Monday that the victims are from Venezuela and emigrated to the U.S. in 2021.
Denver7's Allie Jennerjahn contributed to this report
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