Man steals police vehicle sparking shooting, crash on I-95 north in Chester, Delaware County: police
CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) - All lanes of I-95 north in Chester, Pennsylvania have reopened after the pursuit of a stolen police car ended in a crash Thursday morning. Part of the highway was closed and disrupted the Thursday morning commute.
A man identified as Tyrese Knuckles, 25, stole the police car and was shot by officers in Wilmington, Delaware after officers responded to a domestic-related call around 2:30 a.m. at the Cynwyd Club Apartments, New Castle County Police said.
Police alleged Knuckles jumped out of a window and ran across the street in the area of Milltown and Limestone roads from police, where some kind of struggle happened.
At that point, police said one officer attempted to use their taser on Knuckles but was not successful. Knuckles then stole a police vehicle, sparking a chase.
In a press conference, New Castle County Police Capt. Jamie Leonard said it was a "several-mile long chase through New Castle County, through the city of Wilmington" that eventually ended in Chester.
There were multiple collisions during the chase, but all involved police cars hitting other police cars, and no civilian cars were hit, Leonard said. He said one Delaware State Police trooper was injured in a crash involving another state police vehicle.
Police said the chase continued on I-95 before the vehicle came to rest near the exit for the Commodore Barry Bridge.
The vehicle Knuckles was driving became disabled after multiple collisions during the chase.
New Castle Police Sgt. Andrea Botterbusch said Thursday morning that Knuckles was shot during the struggle before getting into the police car. Police also fired at him while he was getting away, leaving bullet holes in the vehicle, she added.
Then in the afternoon press conference, Leonard said he was not prepared to answer questions about the shooting portion of the investigation due to the ongoing investigation - but confirmed "the failed taser deployment occurred before the discharge of the firearm."
Knuckles was hit in the torso and at last check was in stable condition with injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening, Leonard said.
Police still have not traced the full route of the chase because so many units were involved, Leonard said.
He acknowledged that parts of the crash were at speeds that could have endangered the public but was thankful it was at an hour with few people on the road.
Knuckles "put a large amount of Delaware's law enforcement in danger," Leonard added.
Police said Knuckles had an active warrant issued by the Philadelphia Police Department for stalking.
I-95 closed for hours during investigation
The northbound lanes were closed in the area for hours during the Thursday morning commute.
A New Castle County police vehicle with bullet holes in the windshield was at the scene.