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BWC: Suspect fires shots at Colo. officers through windshield of parked car before fatal OIS

Pueblo Police Department officers returned fire after a suspect ignored instructions to raise his hands and fired several shots

By Julianna O’Clair
The Denver Post

PUEBLO, Colo. — A man who Pueblo police officers fatally shot on June 19 apparently fired a gun at them first, according to body-worn camera footage, still images and dispatch recordings that were released in a video briefing Monday.

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The footage, part of a video briefing released Monday, shows a Pueblo officer shouting “Hands, hands, you’re going to get shot,” and telling the man not to reach into his pockets. Gunfire can be seen and heard as the man shoots at officers through the windshield, according to the video. An officer then returned fire, fatally shooting him while he was inside his car. The man, who has not been publicly identified, was declared deceased on scene, according to the department.

The video briefing also shows pictures of a stolen handgun that was recovered from the man vehicle and images of bulletholes on the hood and roof of a patrol vehicle.

The shooting happened when officers responded to reports of a man with a weapon in the 1400 block of U.S. 50 around 7:45 p.m. on June 19, according to a statement from police.

The video released by Pueblo Police includes a clip from the call reporting a man with a weapon. Three men were sitting in a black Dodge car in a deli parking lot with a gun pointing through the driver’s side door, according to the caller. The men later walked into the deli, the caller said.

Police responded to the call and found the suspect’s vehicle in the parking lot of a Popeyes restaurant in the 1500 block of U.S. 50, police said.

Six Pueblo police officers and one dispatcher were placed on administrative leave after the fatal shooting.

The shooting is under investigation by the 10th Judicial District, led by the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office.

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