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Witnesses, Officers Give Conflicting Information About Deadly Shooting

By Melissa Garcia

WESTMINSTER, Colo. (CBS4)- Police are investigating a deadly shooting involving five police officers and one suspect.

Police said the suspect was inside a stolen 90s model red Honda parked near 74th and Tennyson when officers shot him after he opened fire.

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CBS4's Melissa Garcia spoke with devastated loved ones of the man who died.

"He was a great person," said the 21-year-old deceased man's sister, who didn't want her name to be used. "My kids loved him, everybody loved him. He was funny, he was sweet."

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The shooting victim's sister and a friend at the scene (credit: CBS)

She came to the scene of the shooting with flowers in memory of her brother.

"He would give you the shirt off of his back and he just didn't deserve to die like that," she said.

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Police say officers were investigating a stolen car when the man inside the car pulled out a gun and fired multiple rounds at officers.

"It was a stolen vehicle, we were aware of that," said Investigator Kate Kazell, a spokesperson with the Westminster Police Department. "And when the suspect was confronted by the officers, that's when he presented a gun and shot at them."

Officers returned fire.

"Suicide by cop," commented resident Denise Bruce, who heard the gunshots.

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CBS4's Melissa Garcia interviews Denise Bruce (credit: CBS)

Bruce was inside her home with her two young grandchildren at the time of the shooting.

"When a person chooses to open fire on the police, then they're going to get what's coming to them," said Bruce.

Neighbor Krystle Montoya, however, said she saw something different from outside her home just feet away from the shooting.

"From where I was and as close as I was and what I saw, there were no shots from this guy towards them," said Montoya.

She said that she watched as police riddled the car with bullets, "They immediately just swarmed on him, yelled at him to drop something and then shot him up."

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When asked about the conflicting accounts from witnesses, a police spokesperson said that a preliminary investigation showed that the man did fire shots.

According to police, however, initial shots fired by the suspect couldn't be confirmed until the completion of the investigation by the critical incident team.

The suspect has not been identified.

Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.

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