When Lenny Atencio came face-to-face with a couple of would-be burglars, he had no idea of the danger that stood before him.
"If they would've gotten in, I don't know what could've happened. This could've been a really bad situation," Atencio said.
It all started Monday afternoon when bad news showed up in his backyard on West 37th Avenue and Grove Street in Denver. The family of four was all home and unaware of the chain of events about to unfold.
"I heard this big like crash! And then I heard it again. I was running through the hallway and I noticed through the bathroom that the gate was open," Atencio described.
By the time he got to his door, he could see one of the suspects.
"He was just standing there, and when he saw me, yeah he was surprised," Atencio said.
The two suspects made a quick break for the alleyway with Atencio not far behind. He's now glad he never caught them after learning at least one was armed.
"I would not have ran after them. Now I know everyone's got guns," Atencio said.
Monday night, his window was all fixed up, but his mind kept wandering back to the "what-ifs."
"When I realized they had guns and they were shooting, I was like, 'Wow, that could've been us,'" Atencio said.
Denver police said when they arrived to the scene they stopped two suspects in the area of West 34th Avenue and Irving Street. One suspect was immediately taken into custody. Police said the other suspect ran off and was chased for about four blocks to Moncrieff and Lowell where he shot a female officer in the leg and kept running.
The suspect, police said, then carjacked a vehicle near 32nd and Lowell but was eventually killed in a shootout with police after crashing the stolen car at 35th and Lowell.
The officer who was shot, Rachel Eid, was last listed in fair condition.
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