A man wounded by police Wednesday near St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral has been identified as Joseph Nicholas Loera.Loera, 19, had an outstanding arrest warrant for a parole violation, according to Sonny Jackson, spokesman for the Denver Police Department.
Loera, whom police first suspected was a serial criminal known as the “Inside-Out Robber,” was shot multiple times by Denver police at 11:54 a.m. Wednesday after officers approached him near Washington Street and East Colfax Avenue.
Loera was spotted by an officer and the officer called for backup before approaching him.
Jim Roberts, a witness who lives at Capitol Hill Apartments on the corner of East 14th Avenue and Washington Street, said he saw a uniformed officer and an undercover officer start a conversation with the man.
When the uniformed officer put his hand on the suspect’s arm, however, the suspect ran south on Washington Street, Roberts said.
At that point, he said, the man darted into an apartment building at 1375 Washington St.
He was able to get through the front door, said Roberts, but was trapped when he couldn’t get through a security door into the three-story building.
A resident of the apartment complex was sitting across the street on the manicured grounds of St. John’s Cathedral and said it appeared that the suspect had pulled out a “long gun.”
He said the suspect yelled at the officers, “I’m going to blow you away,” followed by an expletive and then he motioned as if drawing down on the officers.
Jackson said no gun was recovered but that Loera threatened to shoot the police officers and made a motion as though he was pulling a pistol when the two officers shot him multiple times.
Loera is in Denver Health Medical Center in serious condition.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
