Shocking footage captures a driver in a stolen car smash into a pedestrian after colliding with a car before a building collapses on top of both vehicles, following a police manhunt.
Police said the driver of a suspected stolen car sped off as officers approached it on the night of February 8 in Baltimore, Maryland.
The car then collided with another vehicle at the intersection of North Avenue and North Wolfe Street, causing both cars to crash into a nearby building, which then crumbled and plunged onto them.
A pedestrian who was standing near the building at the time of the crash was buried by the falling rubble and tragically killed.
Although he was pulled from the debris, he was pronounced dead on the scene, police said. He was identified as Alfred Fincher, 54.
Five other people, including two who were in the stolen car, were injured and hospitalised.
The driver of the stolen vehicle, 33-year-old Shawn Lee Brunson, was subsequently charged.
The actions of the officers involved in the incident are currently under investigation by the Independent Investigations Division of the Office of Attorney General.
As part of the investigation, the division has released both body-worn camera footage of the police response and surveillance footage of the intersection.
The footage reveals that an officer was told to end their pursuit shortly before the crash occurred.
An unidentified speaker can be heard telling the officers to “just let it go” as the chased car was driving at very high speed, seconds before it crashed into the building.
“The officer did not break off the pursuit, and Alfred Fincher is dead,” said Divya Potdar, a Baltimore attorney who is representing Fincher’s surviving family.
The Baltimore Sun quoted the lawyer as saying the officers should be better trained not to “needlessly pursue” vehicles.
Potdar said her firm is attempting to obtain more footage of the events leading up to the crash, and that she hopes the investigation is thorough and transparent.
Fincher was a father of three children, Potdar said. He had four grandchildren, and two more on the way.
At a news conference shortly after the crash, Baltimore Police Deputy Commissioner Richard Worley said he didn’t believe officers “pursued” the Sonata, but instead stated they “tried to stop it.”
A news release says an officer “attempted a traffic stop” near North Patterson Park Avenue and East North Avenue, but the Sonata “failed to stop.”
Once the investigation is complete, the Office of Attorney General will compile a report of its findings and turn it over to the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office.
This office will then determine whether or not to prosecute the officers involved.
