‘Kill me,' suspect pleaded after allegedly shooting Chicago police Officer Andrés Vásquez Lasso
But Vásquez Lasso's partner that day, Officer Miguel Enciso, instead used his Taser to subdue Steven Montano, 21, who is charged with first-degree murder and other felonies in the March 1, 2023 slaying.
Enciso grew tearful on the witness stand on Wednesday as the trial for Montano resumed at the Leighton Criminal Court Building after jurors heard testimony from seven witnesses on Tuesday.
'As I got closer to the fence, I could see my partner on the ground bleeding from his face,' Enciso said, looking down as he fought to compose himself.
Cook County prosecutors on Tuesday opened their case against Montano by introducing jurors to the slain 32-year-old officer, who immigrated from Colombia before joining the police force. He valued the Southwest District he patrolled so much that he bought a house there, they said. On the day he was killed, he woke up early to bid his wife, a flight attendant, goodbye.
Montano's defense attorneys, though, pushed back on the first-degree murder charge, arguing that Montano acted rashly in a moment of extreme stress.
As the trial resumed Wednesday, jurors viewed more body camera footage of the shooting, as emotional police officers took the stand to describe how they remember that day.
Vásquez Lasso and other officers were dispatched to the 5200 block of South Spaulding Avenue on the city's Southwest Side after Montano's girlfriend called 911 to report that he threatened her with a gun, prosecutors said.
During the call, Montano grabbed her phone and tried to stop her from calling for help, prosecutors alleged.
As police arrived, Montano jumped out of a window, prosecutors said, and was chased by Vásquez Lasso, who had arrived at the scene.
As the chase neared a playground, Montano turned toward the officer, prosecutors said, and both fired weapons. Vásquez Lasso hit Montano in the mouth area, and Montano shot the officer in the head, arm and leg.
Enciso recounted how he and Vásquez Lasso came to the aid of fellow officers, who were chasing Montano after the domestic-related 911 call. Stuck in traffic, Vásquez Lasso jumped out of the police vehicle and chased after the suspect.
Realizing he likely wouldn't get through the traffic shortly before 5 p.m., Enciso parked the car and also left on foot in the direction his partner ran.
He soon heard gunshots, he testified, recalling that the shots had different timbres from separate weapons.
During cross examination, Assistant Public Defender Brett Balmer asked whether the different gunshots went off 'simultaneously.'
'Yes,' Enciso replied.
As another officer performed CPR on Vásquez Lasso, Enciso approached Montano with commands that he said the then-18-year-old ignored.
'He begins to beg me to kill him,' Enciso said.
Montano asked why Enciso didn't kill him, the officer testified.
Enciso testified that he ordered Montano to 'shut the f*** up.'
Montano responded, according to Enciso: 'You shut the f*** up b****. That's why I killed your b**** a** boy.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
9 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Cops kill man attacking pregnant woman when he resists Taser effect, FL cops say
Law enforcement shot and killed a man who was found attacking a woman protecting a child in a bedroom after multiple rounds of a Taser had no effect on him, Florida authorities said. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office got a call about a domestic incident at a home at about 11 p.m. July 15, and officers followed the sounds of screaming to a locked bedroom door, according to a news release. Officers forced their way in and said they found the bedroom room in disarray and a man attacking a woman who was pregnant with his child as she was holding another young child. 'Upon kicking the door in, they observed a male on top of a female pulling her hair as she held and appeared to be shielding a child,' officers wrote in the release. 'The officers gave several commands for the male to release the female and back away, but he refused and continued to aggressively attack her.' Chief Alan Parker said during a news conference that officers used a Taser on the man to allow the woman and child to get away. But the man kept yelling and wasn't compliant with officers' commands, so they backed out of the room and tried to get him to come out and surrender over the next 30 minutes or so, Parker said. Eventually, he came out of the bedroom, but when officers tried to take him into custody, he fought them off, and they used a Taser on him again, multiple times, according to Parker. 'In the end he fights through those Tasings and he gets up and attacks the officers, and there's a group of officers there this time,' Parker said. 'He knocks one over and into a table and drives the other one all the way through the kitchen continuing to attack.' That's when two officers and a sergeant shot him, the chief said. Fire rescue was already at the home and started treating the man immediately, but he died at a hospital, the chief said. Sheriff T.K. Waters didn't say exactly how many times officers used the Taser on him, but he said 'it was a lot.' During the roughly 45-minute incident, the man was chewing on the woman's hair that he had ripped out and was speaking incoherently, according to Parker. 'I don't know whether it was drugs or whether there was a mental situation that's going on,' Waters said. 'It's very difficult to tell just by watching and looking. It was very bizarre, very dangerous.' The investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
Chicago Tribune
13 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
‘Kill me,' suspect pleaded after allegedly shooting Chicago police Officer Andrés Vásquez Lasso
In the chaotic moments following the fatal shooting of Chicago police Officer Andrés Vásquez Lasso, the alleged shooter yelled to responding officers, according to body camera footage: 'Kill me. Kill me.' But Vásquez Lasso's partner that day, Officer Miguel Enciso, instead used his Taser to subdue Steven Montano, 21, who is charged with first-degree murder and other felonies in the March 1, 2023 slaying. Enciso grew tearful on the witness stand on Wednesday as the trial for Montano resumed at the Leighton Criminal Court Building after jurors heard testimony from seven witnesses on Tuesday. 'As I got closer to the fence, I could see my partner on the ground bleeding from his face,' Enciso said, looking down as he fought to compose himself. Cook County prosecutors on Tuesday opened their case against Montano by introducing jurors to the slain 32-year-old officer, who immigrated from Colombia before joining the police force. He valued the Southwest District he patrolled so much that he bought a house there, they said. On the day he was killed, he woke up early to bid his wife, a flight attendant, goodbye. Montano's defense attorneys, though, pushed back on the first-degree murder charge, arguing that Montano acted rashly in a moment of extreme stress. As the trial resumed Wednesday, jurors viewed more body camera footage of the shooting, as emotional police officers took the stand to describe how they remember that day. Vásquez Lasso and other officers were dispatched to the 5200 block of South Spaulding Avenue on the city's Southwest Side after Montano's girlfriend called 911 to report that he threatened her with a gun, prosecutors said. During the call, Montano grabbed her phone and tried to stop her from calling for help, prosecutors alleged. As police arrived, Montano jumped out of a window, prosecutors said, and was chased by Vásquez Lasso, who had arrived at the scene. As the chase neared a playground, Montano turned toward the officer, prosecutors said, and both fired weapons. Vásquez Lasso hit Montano in the mouth area, and Montano shot the officer in the head, arm and leg. Enciso recounted how he and Vásquez Lasso came to the aid of fellow officers, who were chasing Montano after the domestic-related 911 call. Stuck in traffic, Vásquez Lasso jumped out of the police vehicle and chased after the suspect. Realizing he likely wouldn't get through the traffic shortly before 5 p.m., Enciso parked the car and also left on foot in the direction his partner ran. He soon heard gunshots, he testified, recalling that the shots had different timbres from separate weapons. During cross examination, Assistant Public Defender Brett Balmer asked whether the different gunshots went off 'simultaneously.' 'Yes,' Enciso replied. As another officer performed CPR on Vásquez Lasso, Enciso approached Montano with commands that he said the then-18-year-old ignored. 'He begins to beg me to kill him,' Enciso said. Montano asked why Enciso didn't kill him, the officer testified. Enciso testified that he ordered Montano to 'shut the f*** up.' Montano responded, according to Enciso: 'You shut the f*** up b****. That's why I killed your b**** a** boy.'
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- Chicago Tribune
Slain Chicago police officer was ‘living the American dream,' prosecutors say as trial opens
On the day he was killed, prosecutors said, Chicago police Officer Andres Vásquez Lasso woke up early in the morning in the home he bought in the same district he worked in. He said goodbye to his wife, a flight attendant, who had a full day of flights ahead of her. Later that afternoon, Vásquez Lasso began his final shift, prosecutors said, during which he was shot and killed while responding to a domestic call on March 1, 2023. 'Andres Vásquez Lasso was living the American dream,' said Assistant State's Attorney Katie Siefert. 'Andres cared so much for the community he patrolled, he moved into the 8th District and bought his home there.' Attorneys on Tuesday delivered opening statements to the jury at the Leighton Criminal Court Building in front of a courtroom packed with police officers and family members. The jury was sworn in by Judge John Lyke Jr. after being empaneled on Monday. Steven Montano, 21, is charged with murder and other felonies in the attack, accused of fatally shooting the 32-year-old officer as children cowered under a slide at a nearby park. Montano's defense attorneys asked jurors to keep an open mind, telling them that Montano was only 18 at the time, in a relationship with a 37-year-old woman. They argued that the case does not equate to first degree murder, saying Montano had a 'most unfortunate reaction' to a stressful situation. 'Cars were barreling down on him,' said Assistant Public Defender Hussain Khan. 'Officers were running behind him.' Remembered by friends and family as a loyal friend and capable police officer, Vásquez Lasso, was responding to the call when he was shot and killed in the 5200 block of South Spaulding Avenue on the city's Southwest Side. He immigrated to the United States from Colombia when he was 18 years old and later enrolled in college and joined the Chicago Police Department. The domestic incident began, according to prosecutors, when Montano threatened to get his gun during an argument with his 37-year-old girlfriend. She left the residence through a side door and called 911. Montano had also grabbed her phone and tried to stop her from calling for help, prosecutors alleged. As police arrived, Montano jumped out of a window, prosecutors said, and was chased by Vásquez Lasso, who had arrived on scene. As the chase neared a playground, Montano turned toward the officer, prosecutors said, and both fired weapons. Vásquez Lasso hit Montano in the mouth area, and Montano shot the officer in the head, arm and leg as children and others took cover. The case went before the jury as the Chicago Police Department is still mourning the fatal shooting of another one of their own, Officer Krystal Rivera, who was killed by a fellow police officer on June 5, the first CPD officer to die of friendly fire in nearly 40 years. Vásquez Lasso was one of two police officers shot to death in 2023 in attacks considered to be on-duty. About two months after he was killed, Chicago police Officer Aréanah Preston was slain as she returned to her Avalon Park home from a late-night shift.
