AURORA | Douglas County Sheriff’s deputies shot and killed a person and apprehended two others early Tuesday morning following a car chase through Centennial in which several people repeatedly shot at deputies.
No deputies were injured in the incident, which began between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m., Nov. 27 near the intersection of South Broadway and C-470 on the border of Littleton and Highlands Ranch, according to Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock.
One of the three people involved in the shooting is being treated for injuries at a local hospital. Investigators are working to identify that person and prepare an arrest warrant, Spurlock said.
Deputies are waiting for the Douglas County Coroner to identify the person who was shot and killed, according to Spurlock.
Deputies identified a third person involved in the shooting as 20-year-old Peirce Elliott Langewisch. Langewisch was arrested on an outstanding warrant for failing to register as a sex offender, Spurlock said.
Langewisch, who had a swastika drawn or tattooed onto his throat in his booking photo, is a native of Illinois and has not previously been arrested in Colorado, according to Colorado Bureau of Investigation records.
Douglas County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a traffic incident early Tuesday morning after witnessing a Jeep Grand Cherokee recklessly driving west on C-470, officials said. Deputies then ran a search for the license plate registration on the car and determined the vehicle was stolen.
Shots were “immediately” fired from the Jeep toward officers, Spurlock said at an early morning press conference. Deputies then pursued the vehicle for about five miles through Centennial, possibly through Greenwood Village and near Park Meadows Mall before ramming the Jeep with multiple cruisers on East Dry Creek Road beneath the Interstate 25 overpass.
At least five officers were involved in returning fire and apprehending the suspects after the crash. The deputies involved were taken to the hospital as a precaution, but did not have any significant injuries.
Occupants of the Jeep fired at officers at least two separate times and dropped several items out of the windows of the car during the chase.
Several local law enforcement agencies, including investigators from the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, have retrieved items ditched by the suspects during the pursuit, Spurlock said. He did not specify what those items are.
Spurlock said Langewisch and the two other people involved in the chase and shooting could be tied to other recent crimes in the metro area.
Local prosecutors are preparing charges against the surviving suspects, according to George Brauchler, district attorney for the 18th Judicial District.
Brauchler said charges could range from property crimes to the attempted murder of police officers.
A critical response team, which comprises members from the district attorney’s office and the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s office, will continue to investigate the incident and response.
East Dry Creek Road and both north and south exits on I-25 were closed for more than 12 hours as officials investigated the scene. The road and corresponding exits were expected to open shortly before 5 p.m. Tuesday, Spurlock said.