The man wanted in connection with a fatal shooting after video of the incident was posted on Facebook is dead following a brief pursuit in Erie, Pennsylvania, that began after he was recognized at a McDonald’s on Tuesday.
According to Pennsylvania State Police, officers received a tip around 11 a.m. when Steve Stephens’ vehicle was spotted at a McDonald’s in Erie.
Stephens ordered a 20-piece McNuggets and a large order of fries in the drive-thru, restaurant employees said. He was given his order of McNuggets, but the employees tried to make him wait for his fries after one of the workers recognized him.
“But he just took his nuggets and said, ‘I have to go,’ and he drove off,” Henry Sayers, the restaurant’s manager, told the New York Times.
An employee at the restaurant immediately called 911.
Troopers in marked patrol cars initiated a pursuit that lasted two miles. Troopers attempted a PIT maneuver to disable Stephens’ vehicle, and as it was spinning out of control, police say Stephens pulled a pistol and shot himself in the head.
A patrol trooper was not able to stop in time and slid into Stephens’ vehicle. There were no injuries to law enforcement or members of the public.