A man who was shot and killed by a Denver police officer threatened the officer and pretended that he was armed with a gun, police said.
Jason T. Gomez, 33, of Denver died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to the Denver Coroner’s Office.
The shooting happened at about 2 a.m. near West Ada Place and South Hazel Court, police said.
Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson said the officer, who has not been named, told investigators that the man he was chasing shouted threats and then posed as if he was pointing a gun.
“He verbally threatened the officer and acted as if he was armed with a gun,” Jackson said.
Investigators verified the officer’s story with a least one “independent witness,” Jackson said.
Jackson did not have details on exactly what Gomez shouted at the officer.
Police have not found a suspect gun.
The incident started when the officer, a seven year veteran, tried to stop a car because because it was being driven erratically, police spokesman Sonny Jackson said.
The driver eluded the officer but the policeman spotted the same car a short time later parked in a driveway, Jackson said.
When the officer approached the car on foot, the driver jumped from the car and ran. The officer chased him on foot, Jackson said.
Gomez has a long arrest record, according to a Colorado Bureau of Investigation data base search, including at least three felony convictions resulting in prison sentences.
His most recent prison sentence was for assault, burglary, vandalism and an escape, said Katherine Sanguinetti, a corrections spokeswoman.
Gomez was on parole from the Colorado Department of Corrections since Feb. 13, said Katherine Sanguinetti, a corrections spokeswoman.
His parole would have ended on Feb. 13, 2009, Sanguinetti said.
Jeff Chatman, 52, who lives on the block, said he was awakened by gunshots and roaring car engines.
Chatman said he heard three or four shots fired, then a short lull followed by a quick succession of about seven shots.
Police flooded the area in short order, Chatman said.
“You could hear the snow crunching and engines roaring,” Chatman said.
Jackson said Gomez, who was pronounced dead at Denver Health Medical Center, was wanted on a felony warrant.
Chatman said the neighborhood is rife with crime, including routine car break-ins and drug dealings.
Recently Chatman, who is a car mechanic, had tools stolen from a truck parked at his home.
“They stole all my livelihood out of the back of my truck,” Chatman said. “I don’t like the thieving and drug dealing.”
Victor Ortega, 24, a construction worker who lives on the block, said he heard the gunshots and then police cars responding to the scene.
Ortega, who has three young children, has lived on Ada Place for just a few months, he said. He described the early-morning incident as “frightening.”
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
