The Lakewood Police Department is asking the public for tips on where to find the driver of a 2014 Chevrolet Camaro involved in a fatal hit-and-run last week. The crash killed Terre Engdahl, an accomplished 29-year-old parafencer who trained and competed with the Denver Fencing Center.
Engdahl was hit Friday night near the intersection of Kipling Street and West 23rd Avenue in Lakewood, close to where he lived. He died from his injuries later that night. It doesn't appear he was using a wheelchair at the time, as he was able to walk without assistance.
The driver did not stop after hitting Engdahl, despite suffering extensive damage to the front end of their vehicle. The damage includes a broken driver's side headlight, police said. The Camaro sped down West 23rd Avenue after the crash, but not before someone caught its license plate: DWB-P87.
Police issued a Medina Alert following the crash, which means that messages appear on electronic highway signs. The alert describes vehicles suspected of being involved in a hit-and-run, similar to an Amber Alert.
A spokesperson for the Lakewood police said there were no updates on the search as of Monday afternoon.
Engdahl was able-bodied until a car crash in 2015 caused a traumatic brain injury and a stroke. That led to cognitive troubles that made it difficult for him to speak, and he initially required a wheelchair to get around. He had regained his ability to walk by 2020, when he was one of the athletes featured in a Denverite profile on the Denver Fencing Center.
"He would live [at the center] if he could," his mother Susan Engdahl said at the time. "The more people involved, the happier he will be."
Nathan Anderson, the Denver Fencing Center's owner and head coach, worked with Engdahl on and off during his career. He described Engdahl as a driven competitor who would fence anyone, even if they didn't use a wheelchair. Engdahl was able to compete without one, too, depending on how he felt.
"I remember one bout particularly. At one of the tournaments, [Engdahl] was fencing another parafencer and the other parafencer was coached by a 2020 Olympian, so he got really tight. He ended up winning 15-14 and he was super excited," said Anderson on Monday. "He was one of those athletes that was never down. If he was fencing, he was happy."
Anderson said the center's parafencing team is still figuring out how to honor Engdahl. The Parafencing National Championships are in Salt Lake City this April, and Anderson said they may wear black armbands or something similar as a memorial.
Colorado Rep. David Ortiz, the state's first lawmaker to use a wheelchair, told CPR News he wasn't personally familiar with Engdahl. Still, the fencer's death resonated with him as one in a line of many incidents where people with disabilities are disregarded.
"[I'm] just really saddened by the loss. I have trained in adaptive fencing. It's one of the few adaptive sports where I feel like we can be on equal footing," Ortiz said. "I can only imagine for those young adults with disabilities that looked up to this person and now lost him for something that seems so senseless."
People with information on the suspect's car can reach the Lakewood police at 303-987-7300. They can also give tips to the Metro Denver Crime Stopper at 720-913-7867.
Denverite's Kevin J. Beaty and CPR News' public affairs reporter Bente Birkeland contributed to this report.
