By Lucas Wall, The Houston Chronicle
A man who led police on a high-speed chase for miles along Houston freeways apparently shot himself to death today after the pickup he was driving smashed into the rear of another truck.
Police were trying to identify the man, who had held officers at bay after the accident on North Loop 610 near Liberty Road in northeast Houston.
Traffic on both sides of the Loop was halted as police crouched behind patrol cars while the man sat in the wrecked truck. After his death, police began allowing southbound traffic to move past the scene, but northbound traffic was being directed off the freeway as police preserved the crime scene for homicide detectives.
The traffic jam stretched for miles in both directions.
The chase began late this morning on the North Freeway near North Main after an officer spotted a pickup that had been reported stolen.
Police pursued the truck, which reached speeds of more than 100 mph heading south on Interstate 45 through downtown to the South Loop. The fleeing pickup then turned onto the Loop, heading east and then north before it hit the rear of another pickup about 11:20 a.m..
A person who was believed to be a passenger in the stolen pickup rolled out and lay on the shoulder of the freeway until police were able to move him to safety about 20 minutes later.
The driver was reported to be holding a gun to his own head, and police stayed behind patrol cars and kept traffic at a distance.
Police said the man apparently shot himself shortly before noon.