Maryland murder suspect leads police on chase that ends in North Philly crash

Police officers attempting to stop a pickup truck for a traffic violation were instead lead on a chase through North Philadelphia by a murder suspect who was wanted in Maryland late Sunday, officials said.

According to Philadelphia Police Inspector D.F. Pace, the incident began at about 11:14 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 14, 2024, after officers ran the tags on a blue pickup truck they stopped along the 4000 block of I Street in Philadelphia's Juniata Park neighborhood for traffic violations.

After running the truck's license plate -- which had a Maryland plate -- Pace said, the officers learned the truck was sought in connection to a murder in that state that had occurred just the day before.

Before officers could approach the vehicle, Pace said, the driver sped away and the police gave chase "given that the vehicle was wanted in a connection with a homicide."

Through the course of the chase, the truck ended up crashing along the 4000 block of Castor Avenue, where Pace said, it slammed into two vehicles that were parked illegally in the center median before it continued to crash into vehicles parked on both sides of the street.

Pace said that there were two people inside the pickup truck and they were both taken to nearby hospitals.

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The driver, Pace said, suffered injuries to his leg and back and the passenger was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

Follow up investigation, he said, found that the blue pickup truck, which was totaled in the crash, allegedly belonged to a victim that was murdered in Queens County, Maryland.

Pace said the driver of the truck is being held as a suspect in that homicide and police will be extraditing him back to Maryland to face charges.

The individual, Pace said, is also expected to face charges due to this incident in Philadelphia, as well.

Also, Pace said, investigators did not recover any weapons from the vehicle.

Police did not immediately provide further identifying information on the individuals involved in this incident. But, Pace said, an investigation is ongoing.

This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.