Pursuit of Stolen Vehicle Ends in Fatal Crash in St. Paul

St. Paul, MN (MinnesotaNow) - One person was killed late last night in a collision involving a law enforcement vehicle in the Twin Cities.

The State Patrol says the deadly crash occurred around 11 p.m. along Robert Street in St. Paul. A preliminary report says the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office squad car was traveling west on an intersecting street with its emergency lights and siren activated when it collided with another vehicle traveling north on Robert Street.

Driver Killed

The State Patrol says the driver of the civilian vehicle was killed in the collision. He has been identified as 51-year-old Tha Wah of St. Paul.

Young Child Also Injured

The crash report indicates he had two passengers. A woman, identified as 44-year-old Nay Blut was transported to Regions Hospital with life-threatening injuries. The other passenger was a 4-year-old boy, who was also transported to the hospital with what were described as non-life-threatening injuries.

The deputy driving the squad car has been identified as 35-year-old John Andrew Gleason of Cottage Grove. He also had a passenger, 19-year-old Lawrence Nyakundi Obondi. The State Patrol says both were taken to the hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Pursuing Stolen Vehicle

According to the Sheriff's Office, the fatal collision occurred while a deputy was pursuing a stolen vehicle. A 27-year-old man was later arrested in connection with the vehicle theft.

Second Crash Involving Law enforcement This Week

Earlier this week, 72-year-old Aristea Kontinakis suffered life-threatening injuries when the vehicle she was driving collided with a Farmington Police Department SUV. The State Patrol says the Farmington police officer involved in the crash, 22-year-old Alexander Goudreau, suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

READ MORE:  Farmington Woman Critically Hurt in Crash With Police SUV

The crash report indicates that the emergency lights and siren on the law enforcement vehicle were activated at the time of Monday’s crash.

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