CHICAGO — A man is in custody after leading police on an hour-long police chase throughout Chicago, leaving one woman killed and several officers injured.
Just after 8 p.m. Wednesday, Chicago police said a 22-year-old man was spotted driving a Jeep near 115th Street and Cottage Grove. Police said the vehicle was possibly wanted for numerous crimes committed in neighboring suburbs.
Officers attempted to pull over that vehicle but the driver kept going, and ended-up leading police on a chase on the Dan Ryan Expressway to the Kennedy Expressway.
The suspect crashed on the city’s North Side at Irving Park and Keystone, got out of the vehicle and ran to a nearby gas station with police chasing him on foot.
The suspect then jumped into a running SUV and managed to get away, as Chicago police and Illinois State Police attempted to cling to the vehicle.
Police continued to chase the suspect, and officers ended-up crashing into two civilian cars on Irving Park near Ashland. The squad car hit a Ford Explorer with a 37-year-old woman behind the wheel. The woman was pronounced dead at Illinois Masonic Hospital.
The same squad car also hit a white Hummer that was sitting at a light. The male driver and two female passengers were transported to Northwestern Hospital in fair condition.
Two officers had to be extricated by firefighters after the crash. It took more than 20 minutes to get the officer out of the passenger side. The officers are in fair condition condition with minor threatening injuries.
Police said the suspect was finally caught in the 800 block of Pershing, after he crashed and gave officers a brief foot chase.
WGN has learned that police initially called off the chase about 25 minutes before that deadly crash.
Scanner audio: “terminate the chase. Let each one monitor the vehicle…we can terminate. Terminate the chase….we are terminating at Montrose and Menard.”
The suspect is now in custody at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Officers said he’s in serious condition. Multiple charges are pending.