Police arrested a 65-year-old man who officials said was fleeing officers when he struck and killed a man walking his dog Thursday morning in south Lubbock.
Gene Davis was booked Thursday into the Lubbock County Detention Center. His charges were not immediately available.
He is accused of striking 70-year-old Francis Romanofski as he was walking his dog near the intersection of 93rd Street and Memphis Avenue.
Davis’ arrest came after the end of a police chase that began about 11:31 a.m. in the 3400 block of Frankford Avenue after a Lubbock patrol officer attempted to stop a vehicle for an expired license plate, according to a Lubbock police officials.
However, the driver, later identified as Davis, refused to stop and aggressively sped away from the officer, who gave chase, according to police.
The officer’s supervisor called off the pursuit five minutes later as a Texas Department of Public Safety helicopter began watching the fleeing vehicle, which was being driven erratically through neighborhoods, the release states.
The helicopter crew apprised Lubbock police of the fleeing vehicle’s status.
Meanwhile, a Lubbock police officer in an unmarked unit spotted the fleeing vehicle on Knoxville Avenue and re-initiated the pursuit, which traveled west on 82nd Street.
A deputy with the Lubbock County Sheriff’s Office, which was in the area, joined the pursuit and took the lead.
That’s when the fleeing vehicle struck Romanofski as he was walked his dog near 93rd Street and Memphis Avenue, the release states.
Following the collision, the deputy used his vehicle to disable the fleeing vehicle and backup officers arrived and maneuvered with his vehicle, eliminating the suspect vehicle’s ability to flee the scene.
Backup officers arrived on scene and arrested Davis.
Meanwhile, Romanofski was taken by ambulance to University Medical Center where he died.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Police say fleeing suspect kills elderly man walking dog in Lubbock
Reporting by Gabriel Monte, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
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