Minnesota crash after police pursuit leaves 2 dead, 3 hurt

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A crash in Minneapolis early Thursday that followed a police pursuit of an SUV that was reportedly stolen has left two juveniles dead and three others hospitalized, authorities said.

Officers in suburban Robbinsdale spotted a Mercedes SUV about 2 a.m. that was reported stolen in Minneapolis and attempted to stop the vehicle, police said.

The driver sped off and officers began a pursuit, police said. The chase moved from Robbinsdale into northeast Minneapolis, where the SUV’s driver lost control and crashed, splitting the vehicle in half, authorities said.

All five people in the vehicle were under 18, officers said. One was declared dead at the scene of the crash, and the other four were taken to hospitals, where Robbinsdale police said a second person died.

“Carjackings have been on the rise, I think everyone knows that, even in the western suburbs we’ve had an increase in carjackings, violent carjackings,” said Robbinsdale Capt. John Kaczmarek. “Obviously we attempt to stop those individuals from performing those.”

A State Patrol reconstruction team was called to the scene.

In July, an innocent motorist was killed while a Minneapolis police officer was pursuing a stolen vehicle. In that case, a prosecutors said the officer was driving nearly 80 mph (129 kph) with his siren and lights activated when his squad car slammed into another vehicle. That officer was charged with manslaughter and vehicular homicide.