Hit-And-Run Ends In Death
Police did not specify what charges Wells had served time for, for which he was out on probation at the time. File photo, Alaska Superstation ABC®.
by
Jamey Kirk
Story Created:
Jul 9, 2008 at 10:28 AM AKST
Story Updated:
Oct 12, 2010 at 4:06 PM AKST
Anchorage, AK - An Anchorage resident has been identified in a rollover crash that led to the driver's death Tuesday evening. 24-year-old Robert Kyle Wells side-swiped a police squad car, which led to the high speed chase that ended his life.
The officer driving the cruiser pursued his assailant eastbound on 4th at a "high rate of speed," as accounted by the Anchorage Police Department's Sergeant Bloodgood in a press release. Wells's soon lost control of his truck, which struck the underbelly of the adjoining embankment that failed to slow the trucks momentum.
The truck took several rolls and landed hood down in the Anchorage Jail parking lot, crushing the driver inside.
Following the accident, responding officers were left baffled as to why the man didn't stop, or what the exact cause of death was. Speaking on behalf of the police department, officer Paul Honeman summed up the confusion facing officers at the scene, "suspect could be medical concern or impairment, or could be from injuries sustained after collision vehicle flipping, we won't know until results of the autopsy."
It became clear later that at the time of the incident, Wells was under probation and driving on a revoked drivers license. Drugs and alcohol have not been attributed to the driver's actions, however toxicology results will indicate whether the driver was acting on his own judgement.
Next of kin have been notified of Wells's death.
The officer driving the hit-and-run vehicle was left unharmed. The department did not release the officer's identity.
