Officers shoot, kill 2 suspects following police chase in Denver metro area

Police officers shot and killed two suspects, at least one of whom police said had fired shots at them, following a chase in the Denver metro area.

Thornton police said the pursuit started early in the morning -- about 2:30 a.m. -- on Tuesday when officers in the southern section of Thornton spotted a car with no plates that looked suspicious. They followed the car for several miles into ultimately into Lakewood.

Soon after the chase crossed into Lakewood, police say one of the people in the car that was being chased got out of the vehicle and fired shots at the Thornton officers. That happened near the intersection of Alameda Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard.

The pursuit then continued further west in Lakewood and at the intersection of 2nd Avenue and Garrison Street it came to an end. After daybreak several vehicles could be seen rammed up next to each other at the intersection. At least one appeared to be a police vehicle.

Police say it was there that two people came out of the vehicle and one had a gun. Officers shot and killed both of them.

The scene around the crash in Lakewood was blocked off with police tape due to the investigation.

The identification of the suspects who were killed hasn't been released. It appears that another, related scene was at the intersection of Alameda Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard.

A person who lives near 2nd and Garrison said the crash woke her up in the middle of the night.

"Crashes happen a lot at that bridge because it gets a little icy and there's a dip. So we've heard cars wipe out there before," she said. "But the shots? You knew what they were. It was like five really quick ones."