A tractor-trailer driver that "aggressively" tried to ram officers during a police chase has died following a shootout in New York Wednesday night, authorities said.
The series of events started in Genesee County around 8:30 p.m. when an officer attempted to pull over the semi tractor-trailer driver for speeding. Police said the fleeing vehicle traveled across county lines and there was “some kind of ramming” between the driver and multiple patrol cars.
"We had deputies out front blocking these roadways trying to keep our civilians safe because it’s a large vehicle that frankly is nearly impossible to try and stop with our patrol cars,” said Livingston County Sheriff Tom Dougherty, according to Rochester's WROC-TV.
Police said they successfully used spike strips on the tractor-trailer, but they failed to stop the driver, who later began shooting at officers from out of the vehicle's rear window.
An emergency alert was issued informing residents that police were "currently in pursuit of a tractor-trailer 390 SB from Geneseo, he is trying to ram traffic off the highway at this time," according to the station.
Dougherty said multiple rounds were fired at the officers, as he changed speeds and made several U-turns during the chase.
Deputies with long guns would later take "several" shots at the vehicle, which eventually came to rest in a ditch off the side of the roadway. Police said no officers were shot during the chase.
“We have a lot of scenes to tech with a lot of gunfire was exchanged,” Dougherty told WROC-TV. “I will confirm that the operator is deceased, and we’re working through the background timeline to find out who this guy is [and] why this happened.”
A tractor-trailer driver that "aggressively" tried to ram officers off the road while shooting at them has died following a police chase in New York on Wednesday night, authorities said. (Livingston County Sheriff's Office)
Police said they're in the process of determining what contents were inside the vehicle.
