Homicide suspect kills himself after fleeing through 3 states, authorities say
Apr 13, 2024, 11:24 AM
CUSTER, S.D. (AP) — Authorities said they’re investigating a case of domestic violence that ended with a man dead and a woman injured in South Dakota, and the suspect fleeing through Wyoming before killing himself Saturday in Colorado.
Deputies responded to a report of a homicide around 9:45 p.m. Friday at a home on U.S. Highway 16 west of Custer in far western South Dakota. They found a man dead there, while a woman who was assaulted in the incident drove herself to a hospital, South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said in a news release.
The suspect fled the scene into Wyoming. He was eventually stopped early Saturday after a pursuit in northern Colorado, where he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the Larimer County, Colorado, Sheriff’s Office said in a separate statement.
The sheriff’s office said it was notified around 2 a.m. Saturday that the suspect was driving a pickup truck toward Colorado from Cheyenne, Wyoming. Law enforcement tried to contact him, but he eluded officers as he drove south on Interstate 25. Attempts by deputies and state troopers to stop him with tire spikes near the Buckeye exit failed, and the suspect shot at officers, the sheriff’s office said.
Deputies eventually used a technique called a PIT maneuver, which involves using a squad car to spin the suspect’s car, to stop him, the sheriff’s office said.
“The man stayed inside the truck, and before they could contact him, he shot himself,” the statement said. He died at the scene just south of the Wellington exit, about 65 miles (105 kilometers) north of Denver and about 280 highway miles (450 kilometers) from Custer.
The sheriff’s office said a handgun was recovered from the suspect’s vehicle. Officers did not fire their weapons during the incident, it said, and no other injuries were reported.
“This was an extremely dangerous situation involving an armed suspect with a disturbing disregard for public safety,” Lt. Troy Badberg of the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office said in the statement. “Dispatchers, investigators, and peace officers across multiple states worked together quickly and did everything they could to prevent harm to innocent people.”
Names of the victims and the suspect were not immediately released.
