Man dies after police pursuit through Vacaville, Fairfield
The driver sustained a self-inflicted gunshot; police recovered a handgun from inside the vehicle.
(Video by Matthew Keys/Solano NewsNet)
A police pursuit that wound through portions of Vacaville and Fairfield early Tuesday morning ended when the driver of the chased vehicle apparently took his own life.
The incident started around 12:40 a.m. near the intersection of Gibson Canyon Road and Vine Street when a Vacaville police officer attempted to stop a dark-colored sedan for an unknown traffic violation.
The driver of the sedan initially pulled in to the parking lot of a fire station before taking off, leading officers on a high-speed chase that wound through several main streets in Vacaville before ending up on west-bound Interstate 80.
At one point, the driver left the freeway in Fairfield, exiting onto Manuel Campos Parkway at a high rate of speed before turning around and returning to the east-bound lanes of Interstate 80.
Deputies from the Solano County Sheriff’s Department and officers with the California Highway Patrol assisted Vacaville Police during portions of the chase. A CHP helicopter stayed overhead during much of the pursuit.
As the chase re-entered Vacaville, police were able to deploy a set of spike strips, flattening most of the car’s tires.
The pursuit ended in Vacaville when the driver stopped near the intersection of Alamo Drive and Merchant Street.
Officers shouted commands for the driver to exit the vehicle, but he remained inside, motionless and slumped over the center console of the car.
The pilot of the CHP helicopter later told police that the driver appeared to be unconscious with a pool of blood forming on his shirt, according to dispatches reviewed by Solano NewsNet.
A police officer eventually approached the vehicle and found the suspect suffering from a single gunshot wound to the head. Fire personnel declared him deceased at the scene. His identity was not available as of early Tuesday morning.
Police later recovered a Smith & Wesson handgun from the front of the vehicle near the driver’s body.
A portion of Alamo Drive near Merchant Street was blocked to traffic while police investigated the incident.
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