A suspect in the New Year’s fatal shooting of an 11-year-old girl and a 47-year-old woman at a Denver home has been formally charged with two counts of first-degree murder, officials say.
Pedro Cortez, 25, was charged with first-degree murder “extreme indifference” in the deaths of Angelica Martinez, 11, and Rebecca Yanez, 47, who were both killed by a single bullet that tore through the home.
He also was charged with possession of a weapon by a previous offender and illegally firing a weapon, said Lynn Kimbrough, spokeswoman for the Denver district attorney’s office.
Martinez and Yanez were inside the home at 4708 W. 11th Ave. celebrating the arrival of the New Year when they were both killed by the same bullet. Yanez was buried today; Angelica’s services are Thursday.
Cortez remains in the Denver City Jail with no bond. He will be advised of the murder charges Thursday, Kimbrough said.
Stories told to police by Cortez and one of his companions that night differ on the facts, however, according to court records.
Cortez told detectives that he fired a single bullet from a .44-caliber handgun at a street light and that two companions fired the rest of the bullets from the gun at the same street light.
Michael Manzanares, 23, and Jessie Santos, 24, were arrested for investigation in the shooting and released.
Kimbrough said there was not enough probable cause to hold Manzanares and Santos on formal charges in the shooting.
Manzanares’ case file has been sealed, Kimbrough said.
In Santos’ arrest-warrant affidavit, Cortez’s wife told police that she saw her husband, Manzanares and Santos handling a handgun and that the three walked over to Lakewood and Dry Gulch Park. She said she later heard gunshots.
A witness told police that he heard gunshots and saw three men run from the park toward an apartment complex at 1280 Wolff St.
When police interviewed Cortez, he initially denied firing any shots, according to court records. He also refused to name the men he had been with.
Cortez later admitted he was standing north of the park and fired one bullet from a large Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum handgun. He told police he saw that two women had been killed and then hid the gun.
At first, Santos denied seeing a gun but later told police he saw Cortez fire the weapon.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com
