Collection of Articles about Police Officers Killed by Semi- Automatic ...

When a confused and agitated DeJesus reached Kokojan's car, DeJesus couldn't open
the door because his hands were trembling so much. DeJesus didn't realize it was
unlocked.
Kokojan said he thinks he remembers DeJesus' girlfriend, Paula Gutierrez, standing to
the left of the front bumper. Gutierrez has been charged by police with first-degree
murder and armed robbery as an accomplice.
At that point, Kokojan said, both he and DeJesus looked up from the car door and saw
Marrero behind the vehicle. He said he thinks DeJesus reached in a bag over his right
shoulder and produced a gun.
Kokojan said he dove behind the car's front bumper as DeJesus directed an unspecified
number of rounds in Marrero's direction.
“After the shooting stopped, I looked up and saw Nester just looking completely
confused and panicked,'' he said. “The second seemed like it lasted for hours, but I
really never felt like he was going to shoot me.''
Kokojan said he rose and ran upstairs to his apartment. Upon peering out the front
window, he saw Marrero lying in a pool of blood.
“That's when I realized Nester shot a police officer,'' he said.
Officer Veronica Hills then arrived at the scene and yelled to Kokojan to shut his
windows and lock the doors.
Three hours later, after firing several more rounds and taking a hostage in a nearby
apartment, DeJesus shot himself.
For Kokojan, it was not the kind of Friday afternoon he envisioned when moving to
Florida one year ago. The limousine driver and aspiring actor came to Tampa to escape
the doldrums of north Oklahoma, but this was almost too much.
“It's hard to think about,'' he said. “If I hadn't forgotten the receipt, maybe this whole
thing would have happened differently.''
Although he knows it will be tough for the public to accept, Kokojan said, DeJesus wasn't
a monster. He was unhappy in Tampa, however.
“I just want to tell people that if you're having trouble, talk to friends and to neighbors,
don't snap,'' Kokojan said. “I know if Nester needed money, there were plenty of people
around here that would have helped him out.''
Andrew Meadows can be reached at (813) 259-8144.
http://www.tampatrib.com/MGASFX55GFD.html
Tampa Policewoman's Dying Moments Come To Light As Murder
Trial Begins
By JOSHUA B. GOOD jgood@tampatrib.com
Published: May 8, 2003
TAMPA - The two women who were closest to slain Tampa police Officer Lois Marrero
sat in separate rows. Marrero's domestic partner, Tampa police Officer Mickie
Mashburn, sat in the front row. Marrero's sister, Brenda Marrero, sat in the second row.
Both shared a moment of pain and realization Wednesday as public defender DeeAnn
Athan, in her opening statements in Paula Gutierrez's trial on charges of first- degree
murder, robbery and burglary, described Marrero's last moments.