Man dies from apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after fleeing traffic stop, Nebraska State Patrol says
By Jake Anderson
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OMAHA (KETV) — A man died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after fleeing a traffic stop by the Nebraska State Patrol, officials said.
Around 1:30 a.m. Thursday, a trooper stopped a Ford F-150 pickup truck on westbound Interstate 80 near 96th Street, the Nebraska State Patrol said.
During the traffic stop, the driver appeared to be impaired, and the trooper saw open alcohol containers in the vehicle, according to officials.
The driver, who was the lone occupant of the vehicle, accelerated and fled westbound and the trooper started a pursuit, the Nebraska State Patrol.
Officials said as the vehicle fled northbound on Interstate 680, the Omaha Police Department’s Able 1 helicopter joined the pursuit. Another trooper successfully deployed stop sticks to slow the vehicle.
Nebraska State Patrol said after the vehicle passed Blair High Road on I-680, the driver started firing multiple shots out of the driver’s side window and drove down the south embankment, crashing into a tree in the backyard of a residence near North 88th and Sunrise streets.
Able 1 reported that the driver did not exit the vehicle, and additional troopers and Omaha police officers arrived on scene to establish a perimeter, officials said.
The Nebraska State Patrol said several attempts were made to communicate with the driver before a drone was deployed, and the driver was seen motionless inside the vehicle.
An Omaha police K-9 unit approached the vehicle and found the driver with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials said. The driver, who has not been identified, was taken to the University of Nebraska Medical Center, where he died a short time later.
Nebraska State Patrol said no troopers or officers fired shots at any time during the incident, which lasted about 10 minutes.
The incident is still under investigation with assistance from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Omaha Police Department.
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