CRITTENDEN COUNTY, Ark. — Update: Police have identified the victim as 43-year-old Mario Paige.
A West Memphis man died on Tuesday, Dec. 19, after a high-speed chase with an Arkansas State Police trooper ended in a crash.
The chase began on I-40 near the 284-mile marker when the 43-year-old man was being pursued by a state trooper assisting a drug task force in West Memphis. The man was reportedly wanted for multiple felonies.
State police say the trooper was "preparing to perform a TVI" when the man hit his brakes, which caused a crash between the vehicles. Police say he was driving around 140 miles per hour.
His vehicle came to a rest at the bottom of an embankment "beyond the south shoulder."
Reports state that the incident caused the trooper to collide with a vehicle and caused minor injuries to the trooper. He has been placed on paid administrative leave as the criminal investigation division of ASP investigates.
Mr.Paige died from the injuries sustained during the crash. Police did not reveal if he died at the scene or at a local hospital.
“The suspect was driving recklessly and putting the public in extreme danger by driving at high speeds, passing on the shoulder, and almost running other vehicles off the roadway,” said ASP Col. Mike Hagar. “Although we regret any loss of life, we thank God our Trooper and other motorists were not injured.”
The fatal chase is under Arkansas State Police's Criminal Investigation Division.
We will update this article with more information as it becomes available.