FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WISH) — Witnesses helped Fort Wayne police find a dead male in a car, whose driver fled a shooting in the early morning hours, a news release issued Tuesday afternoon said.
The case effectively ended when the male driver went off a road while fleeing police in a 17-minute chase, and eventually left the vehicle with what appeared to be an injury from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
Authorities did not immediately share publicly any information about the identities of the body found in the car or the driver.
Fort Wayne Police Department was called just after 1:25 a.m. Tuesday to a shooting in the 2300 block of Cortland Avenue. That’s in a housing addition off West State Boulevard a few blocks west of U.S. 27.
Witnesses told police that a male was shot and placed in a vehicle that fled the scene. Officers found a large amount of blood and shell casings in an alleyway, prompting a homicide investigation.
“Based on the amount of blood evidence, Detectives believed they were investigating a homicide and the suspect removed the victim from the scene in an effort to conceal the crime,” the release said.
Just over eight hours after police were called, investigators found a vehicle in the parking lot of a business near the intersection of State Road 3/Lima Road and Ludwig Road, a commercial area with restaurants, a Meijer grocery and department store, and gas stations. It’s about a 10-minute drive north of the shooting scene.
Police initiated what they called a “high-risk felony traffic stop,” but the suspect fled, leading to the pursuit.
The pursuit ended when the vehicle went off the road near Madden Road and State Road 205 in northwestern Allen County, about 2 miles northeast of the Whitley County town of Churubusco.
Police said the Fort Wayne Emergency Services Team and Crisis Response Team were called in after the driver refused to exit the vehicle. The suspect eventually left the vehicle and was taken to a hospital for treatment of the gunshot wound.
Police also found a semiautomatic firearm in the vehicle.
The male’s body was found in the back seat of the vehicle. The Allen County Coroner’s Office confirmed the homicide and later will release a statement regarding the identity and cause of death, police said.
