BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. — One person is dead and another is seriously injured after a driver fleeing from law enforcement crashed their vehicle Sunday morning in Brooklyn Park.
It all began in Osseo shortly after 7 a.m. when an officer conducting a routine check on the Kohler Car Wash noticed a silver vehicle pull into one of the wash bays with a license plate that looked like it had been covered with paint or dirt.
When that Osseo officer pulled around to get a better view of the silver car, the driver of a white pickup backed into an adjacent stall sped out of his wash bay at a high rate of speed, according to police.
Osseo Police Chief Shane Mikkelson says his officer did not pursue the truck due to the high rate of speed, but instead followed it southbound on County Road 81 and radioed ahead to Brooklyn Park police.
The Osseo officer soon came upon a crash scene at the intersection of 81 and Brooklyn Boulevard involving the fleeing truck and another vehicle. The officer saw the pickup driver fleeing on foot, and directed Brooklyn Park officers to where he was. That officer then attempted lifesaving measures on the driver of the vehicle that was hit, but was unsuccessful. A passenger in the vehicle was rushed to a local hospital with critical injuries.
"At no time during this tragic event was the Osseo Police Officer in pursuit of the speeding vehicle," Chief Mikkelson emphasized in a released statement. "I want to share my condolences to the family of the crash victims and all those effected by this tragic event including the first responders that arrived at the scene of the accident."
Officials say the suspect is in custody while criminal charges are considered.
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