The police received an alert that the suspect was in the city so they began their search.
Foto:
OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP / Getty Images
Police say a 6-year-old girl has died following a man fleeing from authorities who was suspected of murder crashed into a vehicle carrying a family of five.
The infant, identified as Blessings McLurain-Gray, was killed when the driver struck the car she was in during a pursuit.
A Minneapolis police spokesman revealed the identity of the suspect, Hakeem Waheed Muhammad. Another passenger who was in the family vehicle, a 15-year-old teenager, is still hospitalized.
Muhammad was wanted for his connection to the murder of Devan Dampier, 29, which occurred on April 7.
On July 11, before his arrest, he was charged with Dampier’s murder. Prosecuting reports allege that Muhammad shot and took the victim’s life following an altercation in Minneapolis.
Brooklyn Center police say they received an alert that the suspect was in town. Although authorities have not disclosed how the chase began, they reported that at one point, Muhammad reached speeds of 70 mph in residential areas,
Brooklyn Center officials attempted to use spike strips in conjunction with a patrol helicopter. Both measures failed. Minutes later, the man collided at the intersection of 53rd Avenue and Humboldt Avenue between the Minneapolis border and downtown Brooklyn.
Neighbors and activists rejected that the police carried out a chase in a residential area.
“I can understand people’s anger at the police in pursuing a suspect because then they put the lives of others at risk,” the police spokesman said.
“But ultimately, he is the person who chose to lead the police on a high-speed chase. He was reckless. He didn’t care regarding anyone else, any family. Just anyone. He was just trying to get away and not have to deal with anyone,” he concluded.
Another HCSO representative reported that the other three people in the family vehicle have been released.
Muhammad is booked into the Hennepin County Jail where he is still receiving medical care, a statement said.
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