One person is dead and three are injured after a lengthy police chase ended in a crash on I-279 and an officer-involved shooting, according to police.
The chase of a white SUV began on Route 8 in Penn Township, Butler County, just before 8 p.m. Saturday, according to state police spokesman Trooper Rocco Gagliardi. It’s unclear what initiated the pursuit.
Gagliardi said it was local departments who started the chase, not state police.
The SUV, which held four people, continued on multiple roads in Butler and Allegheny counties with several departments in pursuit. It rolled off of I-279 in Ohio Township close to mile marker 9, the area of Camp Horne Road and Mt. Nebo Pointe.
After the crash, an officer from a local department shot one of the passengers, who later died in the hospital. The police department of the officer has not been named.
Gagliardi said earlier local reports that shots came from the SUV could not yet be authenticated.
The three other passengers were injured. Their conditions are not known.
State police are investigating the shooting because it took place on an interstate. Gagliardi said they are still analyzing body cam footage.
At this point, “we can’t confirm whether the shots came from the vehicle,” he said.
The incident shuttered I-279 between I-79 and Camp Horne Road (Exit 8) for several hours. The route was reopened just before 4 a.m.
Those involved have not yet been identified, and charges did not appear to be filed as of Sunday afternoon.
Gagliardi expects more information on the incident to emerge in the coming days.
