A man was fatally shot in Denver on Saturday amid dueling protests in the city, according to police.

The shooting happened following a verbal altercation, Joe Montoya, division chief of investigations for the Denver Police Department, said at a Saturday press conference.

A “private security guard with no affiliation with Antifa,” is a suspect in the shooting, according to a tweet from Denver police.

“We don’t want any erroneous information going out, any speculation,” Montoya said. “That’s what gets everybody angry and motivated to commit more violence, and that’s what we’re trying to prevent.”

There was a heavy police presence at the event, and officers attempted to keep “two groups with opposing views” apart, Montoya said. 

An event titled “BLM-Antifa Soup Drive” was scheduled to occur near the location of the shooting on Saturday afternoon. That was planned to counter a “Patriot Muster” at the same location, according to a Facebook event.

Two guns and mace were recovered from the scene, Montoya said. Both the suspect and the victim are white males, Montoya said.

Clashes between protesters have escalated into deadly violence multiple times in recent months.

Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, has been charged with fatally shooting two people days after Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Rittenhouse’s arrest has become a rallying point for some on the right, with a legal defense fund that has attracted millions in donations. But others see Rittenhouse as a domestic terrorist whose presence with a rifle incited the protesters.

In Portland, Aaron “Jay” Danielson, 39, a supporter of President Donald Trump and the far-right Patriot Prayer group, was shot and killed Aug. 29 after dueling protests in Portland.

Contributing: The Associated Press