DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. -- Two people were killed Friday night in the crash of a twin-engine turboprop plane that had just taken off from Centennial Airport.

The pilot had just cleared the main runway when he radioed that he had an emergency and was attempting to return the airport. The aircraft slammed into a parking lot of the Meridian Office Park and caught fire, according to Tim Moore, a spokesman for the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

Moore identified the plane as a Mitsubishi MU-2, a type of aircraft used by businesses for light cargo.

The accident happened shortly before 8 p.m. about a half mile from the airport.

A pilot who landed just before the accident told reporters he heard the radio conversation between the plane and the tower.

"He said, 'I need to shut an engine down, roll the trucks,'" Mike Postel said, referring to the pilot's request for emergency crews to meet the plane at the runway. Postel said he looked back to see if the plane was on final approach but didn't see him.

The pilot was on his way back to the airport when the aircraft went down, Moore said.

A fire broke out in the rear of the plane when it crashed in the parking lot of First Data Corp., but a large part of the aircraft did not burn.

Debbie Taylor, of the Federal Aviation Administration's Emergency Operations center in Seattle, identified the flight as Americheck Flight 900. The plane was headed for Salt Lake City and is reportedly owned by Flightline, Inc., in Watkins, Colo.

The Mile High Chapter of the American Red Cross sent a Disaster Action Team to the crash site to help anyone who might have been affected by the accident.

Americheck is a check-recovery service for businesses.