Driver who led high-speed chase dies in apparent suicide, Ceres police report
A man apparently shot himself to death after leading officers on a high-speed chase west from Ceres late Sunday, police said.
The unidentified man was found with a gunshot wound on Shiloh Road, about eight miles west of Ceres, a news release from its Police Department said.
A Ceres officer had tried to stop the man’s Ford Mustang for speeding and other Vehicle Code violations on Hatch Road near Stonum Road about 11:40 p.m., the release said.
The release said the Mustang topped 100 mph on city streets and county roads. The exact route and duration of the pursuit were not available.
The car went into a cornfield along Shiloh, and the driver got out and started running, police said.
Ceres officers and Stanislaus County sheriff’s deputies set up a perimeter, and a sheriff’s helicopter guided them to the driver’s possible location, the release said. Officers then found him with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound from a handgun found at the scene, police said.
The man died at the scene, the release said; no officers fired their weapons.
The man’s name is being withheld until his family is notified. People with information about the case can contact Det. Matthew Berlier at 209-538-5616.
This story was originally published August 16, 2021 at 7:20 PM.
