ARVADA, Colo. – Police on Friday identified the man officers shot and killed Wednesday night after he allegedly lunged at officers with a knife.
Arvada police spokeswoman Jill McGranahan identified the man killed by police as Adrian Valdez, 39. His identity was confirmed by the Jefferson County Coroner's Office.
According to McGranahan, Arvada officers were called to a domestic incident in the 7300 block of 82nd Way around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. They learned that Valdez was involved and had both a felony warrant out of Pueblo and a traffic warrant out of Denver, and that Valdez was armed, McGranahan said.
Shortly before 9 p.m., another callout was made regarding a suspicious person who matched the description of Valdez at another nearby apartment complex, on W. 84th Way.
Officers brought in a K-9 officers to help with the search, and found Valdez armed with a knife “in an enclosed area” of the apartment complex, McGranahan said.
According to police, officers told Valdez to drop the knife several times, but that he approached the officers instead and was shot.
The Jefferson County Critical Incident Response Team is investigating the shooting, and the officers involved have been placed on standard administrative leave in the meantime.