Demetrius “Meech” Cruz was terrified.
The 15-year-old called his aunt, Michelle Cruz, moments before his death early on the morning of Dec. 15, 2012, to tell her he and his cousin were being chased by suspects who bumped their car and wanted to kill them.
The threat came from some guys in a white car who were bent on killing him and his 18-year-old cousin who was at the wheel. Moments after the call was made, someone in the white car pulled out a gun, aimed it at Demetrius and fired.
A bullet struck and killed the teen.
More recently, police have indicated that the murder may have been a dispute over graffiti tagging. No one has been arrested in Demetrius’ murder.
The cousin spoke with Denver Post reporter Tom McGhee about what happened that day. His name was withheld because he is a witness of his cousin’s murder.
The young man said he was driving when the attack came without warning.
The teens were heading home after a long night out on the town. Demetrius was planning to spend the weekend with his cousin at his great-grandmother’s home. He and his parents lived in a Volunteers of America homeless shelter.
A white car began chasing them near Lowell Boulevard and Irving Street. There was no doubt about the intentions of the occupants when that car rammed the back bumper.
The white car kept chasing and repeatedly slamming into the back of the car.
“They keep hitting the car,” Demetrius frantically told his aunt.
Soon, bullets were flying, striking the car. The cousin ducked to avoid being shot.
While they drove on Sheridan Boulevard between West Dartmouth and West Bates avenues, Demetrius was hit twice in the back.
The cousin stopped the car, picked Demetrius’ body up in his arms and ran to nearby houses. He pounded on doors trying to get help for the bleeding boy.
When police arrived, Demetrius was taken to Denver Health Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
Four years later the case remains unsolved.
At one point, Denver detectives believed the shooting may have been connected to increasing violence between rival graffiti taggers.
“It’s no longer just a small-scale property crime,” Denver police Detective George Gray told former Denver Post reporter Sadie Gurman. “Typically, it will start on the wall; they’ll cross each other out. And it evolves like any other gang.”
The tags themselves were becoming more foreboding, often including “187,” the California criminal code for homicide. Taggers fight one another in YouTube videos and flash gang signs in photos on Facebook. Those gangs include WK or Wreckin’ Krew; NOS or Never Out Styled; and EMS, short for Evil Minded Soldiers.
A war between two Latino graffiti groups that erupted in 2006 was marked by drive-by shootings, a stabbing at an outdoor gala and at least two slayings, the detectives told Gurman. Police believed Demetrius’ murder was the first of another series of five murders in 2012 and 2013.
The murder of Isaiah “Hazer” Garcia, 18, on March 23, 2013, which is on that list, is also an unsolved homicide.
Garcia was part of a crew called KHT.
Demetrius’ family has previously denied that he was a tagger. But they acknowledged that Demetrius knew many people who were and that may have played a role in the shooting.
Denver police spokeswoman Christine Downs said the Demetrius Cruz case is now under investigation by the department’s cold case unit.
Downs urged anyone who knows or has heard something about Demetrius’ death to come forward.
“Even if what they know didn’t seem significant it may lead to something we don’t have,” Downs said.
Family members remembered Demetrius as a funny kid who would have people laughing when he walked into a room, a teen who constantly turned routine conversations into rap-song renditions. Friends and acquaintances have dedicated rap songs that were posted on YouTube to Demetrius.
Shortly after Demetrius’ murder, family members held a news conference, asking for people to come forward with any information they have that could help solve the case.
“If you know anything to help us find the killer of my little brother; it’s not right that killers are running around Denver, Colorado, not even around America,” his brother, Donovan Cruz, was quoted as saying by KCNC Channel 4. “We need help to get one more killer in jail, off the streets.”
The family also dedicated a Facebook page to Demetrius called Justice for Demetrius “Meech” Cruz.
Anyone with information that could help solve this case is asked to contact Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-2000.
