Man Pulled From River After Chase, Crash Dies
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Pittsburgh Police say that a man involved in a chase throughout the city is dead.
Officers at Zone 2 say everything started Wednesday night after 8:30 p.m. when a narcotics officer on Liberty Avenue in Downtown Pittsburgh spotted a car matching the description of one that had been carjacked on Monday in Lawrenceville.
Officers tried to pull the car over, and that's when the chase began on Liberty Avenue inbound.
The chase ended at the intersection of Stanwix Street and Fort Duquesne Boulevard when the suspect crashed head on into another car.
"We just saw cop after cop after cop passing through the area; blocking off the bridge… blocking off the whole street," said Brent Kottner, a witness. "We quickly realized that not only was there an accident, there was something going on in the river; something going on on each one of the bridges it seemed like because they weren't letting anyone in through this area."
Three people were in the suspect's car.
The driver jumped over the wall on the 10th Street Bypass. He was able to scale down some construction equipment. Authorities say a gun was dropped at the time.
The man then jumped into the river.
Police sent out dive crews to that scene as well as to Point State Park.
The man's body was pulled from the water at Point State Park. He was taken to Allegheny General Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
According to the Medical Examiner's Office, the suspect has been identified as David Thomas, 19, of the North Side.
The two other men who were in his car were both taken to the hospital by ambulance. They both face charges.
Police have not released their names or the name of the deceased.
The person in the other car who was hit head on received minor injuries. He was checked out on scene and is okay.
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