Former La Crosse police officer killed in Colorado
Scott Von Lanken remembered as incredibly friendly
LA CROSSE, WIs. (WKBT) — A former La Crosse Police Department officer was killed this week in Colorado.
Scott Von Lanken was shot and killed in Denver while talking to two women trying to catch a late-train home. According to the Denver Police Department, Von Lanken was talking with the women when a man approached him from behind, pointed a handgun to his neck and fired.
Former co-workers of Von Lanken remember him as someone able to diffuse any situation with a smile.
“In a very short time he and the person who he was talking to was smiling. He always brought smiles to people’s faces. And I can’t even remember his face without a smile,” said Retired La Crosse Police Department Lieutenant Dan Marcou.
Von Lanken became a La Crosse officer in 1982. He left the position five years later to become a pastor.
Von Lanken was contracted as a security officer for the Denver area’s regional transportation at the time of his death.
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