Suspected Colorado church shooter killed by police following crime rampage

A man suspected in a suburban Denver church shooting that left a woman dead and two ministers wounded was shot to death by police after going on a crime rampage, authorities said.

Jose De Jesus Montoya Villa, 31, was wanted on murder charges stemming from the fatal shooting last week at a church in Aurora when he allegedly set out on a violent crime spree Wednesday afternoon that ended in his death, said Agent Matthew Longshore of the Aurora Police Department.

"Obviously, this person was not afraid to fire their weapon. We're all relieved that no officers were hurt and we're relieved that a violent criminal has been taken off the streets," Longshore said at a news conference Friday night.

An arrest warrant was issued for Montoya Villa on Saturday after homicide detectives identified him as the prime suspect in the fatal shooting at the Iglesia Faro De Luz Church around 8:45 p.m. on Friday. Police allege that Montoya Villa was attending a function at the church with up to 20 people when he suddenly opened fire, killing his ex-girlfriend, Adela Maria Madrid, 37, and wounding two church ministers, police said.

A search was going on for Montoya Villa on Wednesday when the suspect allegedly went on a crime rampage. Longshore said that in roughly 55 minutes Montoya Villa allegedly shot a 26-year-old man in a parking lot in Aurora, carjacked two vehicles, was involved in a hit-and-run, robbed a liquor store and led police on a chase.

The pursuit ended around 4:45 p.m. in the neighboring town of Centennial where police officers cornered him and shot him, Longshore said. Montoya Villa was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Longshore said police did not know the identity of the suspect until officers followed the ambulance to the hospital and realized it was Montoya Villa.

The 18th Judicial District's Critical Incident Response Team is spearheading the investigation of the officer-involved shooting and is expected to review police body-camera video to determine if Montoya Villa fired at police and how many shots officers fired at the suspect, Longshore said.

The two officers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave, pending further investigation.

No officers were injured in the episode. The man who was wounded in the parking lot shooting suffered non-life-threatening injuries, Longshore said.

Aurora police Chief Vanessa Wilson posted a message on Twitter saying she was "extremely relieved that my officers were not injured."

"They stopped a dangerous criminal from further victimizing our community," Wilson said.