ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - A teenage suspect who was being pursued by police ran onto Interstate 70 and was struck and killed by another driver. St. Louis police say that teen was a recent escapee from a juvenile detention center.
The fatal crash happened Tuesday morning on I-70 near Broadway, just north of downtown St. Louis. Police Chief John Hayden says the man who was killed was 17-years-old.
Police say he had been sought by police for about a month after escaping from a juvenile detention center. He was there on weapons and drug-related charges, police say.
The incident began when officers were conducting undercover surveillance of a vehicle that the suspect and another woman were in near Broadway and Biddle Street. The vehicle took off and crashed near the I-70 on ramp. The suspect got out of the car and ran.
Hayden says the suspect were trying to break into multiple cars along broadway when officers, who were wearing protective vests that stated "POLICE" on the chest, caught up to them. He says suspects ran onto the highway and that's when the male suspect was struck and killed.
A woman who was driving the vehicle was not hurt.
The female suspect is not in custody and police are searching for her.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated.
© 2021 KMOX (Audacy). All rights reserved
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Follow KMOX
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram