News

Actions

Police identify suspect killed in 3-county chase

Posted at 4:55 PM, Feb 25, 2013
and last updated 2013-02-26 20:54:39-05

DAVIS COUNTY, Utah -- A man is dead after a high-speed chase through Utah, Salt Lake and Davis Counties led to a standoff along I-15 in Kaysville on Monday afternoon.

Police say the man involved in the chase was the suspect in a Draper bank robbery last Friday. He was identified by police at Brett Max Knight, 33, who resided in Utah County.

Watch: RAW (WARNING): Suspect shot in standoff after three-county chase

Knight was spotted in Lehi on Monday afternoon at around 3 p.m., and Utah Highway Patrol troopers and Lehi Police began the chase along northbound I-15.

"Lots of people, that's where this came from. People recognized him right away, called Draper City police indicating who he was and where he may be," said Dwayne Baird, Utah Dept. of Public Safety.

Knight reached speeds of over 100 miles per hour as the chase went through northern Utah County, Salt Lake County and into Davis County.

"Once you realize that he's got a weapon, and he was, apparently, pointing it not only officers as he passed by, but motorists even saw the weapon that he had in the car and that he was waving it around on the dashboard. With that indication, we knew that perhaps this was a dangerous individual," Baird said.

UHP and Lehi Police put down spike strips, but it didn't immediately stop him. His spiked tires slowed him down and police were able to perform a PIT maneuver near 200 North in Kaysville at around 5 p.m.

Knight got out of his vehicle, reportedly armed with a weapon, and a standoff began. He reportedly made threats and showed his weapon, forcing police to open fire, killing the suspect.

"He had the potential to be not only dangerous to law enforcement but to the public as well and we needed to take the steps necessary to stop that threat," Baird said.

Portions of I-15 were closed throughout Monday afternoon and evening, causing significant delays, but the road had been reopened by 11 p.m.

"It's like a situation if you have a shooting in a home or business, you have to quarantine the area to further the investigation. Unfortunately in this case, it was on the freeway. Had to close the freeway and move motorists off to surface streets and so on and we realize the inconvenience of that but we also want to do a thorough job in that investigation," Baird said.

The medical examiner began an autopsy on Tuesday and the investigation is ongoing.