'Someone died protecting me:' Denver teen shooting survivor speaks out about slain neighbor

A Denver teen is sharing her story of survival with CBS Colorado after she says she was the target of a shooting in the Sunnyside neighborhood that left one man dead, and three others injured. The shooting happened in the early morning hours Sunday morning near 2700 42nd Avenue.

Angelique Guerrera, 17, thought she was going to a small get-together at her friend's house Saturday night, but she says the party grew fast, from only 10 people to about 60 people, all mostly teenagers.

She says at one point a boy she had never met before started making threats. 

"There was this guy, a teenager, taper fade, he was wearing a white sweater, and he was like, 'someone's about to get popped in their head, someone's about to get shot in their head,'" Guerrera recalled. 

So, she started yelling for people to leave. She says not too long ago this summer, she was at another house party where shots rang out, and she didn't want anyone to be killed. 

Once she got outside the house, she saw 41-year-old Tomás Jiménez, the next-door neighbor, who she says had also attended the party, was threatening some teenagers she knew. 

"I noticed the neighbor was in the front, he was holding his gun in the air," she said.

Guerrera says she asked Jiménez to calm down, and he did, but as she was getting in her friend's truck, she says the boy in the white sweater, who had made threats earlier in the party, fired shots at her. 

"I noticed my leg was hit, so I crawled myself from the street to the grass and hid behind a car," Guerrera said. "I just told myself, I was like, 'don't die, don't die, Angelique, you cannot die. You have to survive.'"

She says that's when Jiménez started firing shots back at the boy, to protect her. 

"I'm sad, because someone died protecting me," Guerrera said. 

Guerrera believes her father, who died shortly before she was born, was watching over her, too. 

Now Guerrera has a long road to recovery. She had surgery at Denver Health over the weekend to repair her shattered ankle. She says doctors placed a metal rod in her leg and attached it with screws. She says it will be at least six weeks before her cast can come off. 

Guerrera believes her best friend, who threw the party, set her up that night. She believes her friend wanted the boy in the white sweater to shoot her, because they were in a fight over a guy. 

She says she told that story to Denver Police detectives and showed them text messages as evidence, but she feels police didn't take her seriously.

"They said, 'no, you got caught in the crossfire,'" Guerrera recalled. "When teenagers want to speak, no one wants to listen to us until it's too late."

Denver Police issued the following written statement to CBS Colorado: "Investigators are actively working to solve this case by determining the motive of the shooting and identify the suspect and/or suspects. A thorough scene investigation was completed, all available evidence was collected, and forensic analyses are going on. All theories are being investigated, the police department and our victim's services teams will continue to provide support in services for those impacted by this incident. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers."

"My message to the shooter is 'stop getting other people involved,'" Guerrera said. "Don't hurt other people, because you're trying to hurt me."