UPDATE: Suspect in police chase shot himself
The driver of a pickup truck who died after a police chase on Wednesday morning has been identified.
27-year-old Benjamin David Corson died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to police. Corson was wanted for three separate armed robberies around Colorado Springs.
Officers spotted Corson near an apartment complex on Byron Drive on Wednesday morning. Corson refused to pull over in his pickup truck and a chase ensued.
Police said Corson appeared to lose control of his vehicle before jumping a curb, hitting a parked car, crashing through a fence and landing at the La Cresta Estates in the 200 block of N Murray Blvd.
On Friday police revealed that Corson shot himself at some point during the chase. The suspect was transported to Memorial Central Hospital where he died hours later of injuries related to the self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Officers had been looking for Corson who is believed to be responsible for the following armed robberies:
09/14/12 – Papa Murphy’s Pizza, 2460 S. Academy Blvd.
09/16/12 – Paul’s Liquor, 2824 E. Pikes Peak Ave.
09/17/12 – 8th Street Liquor, 506 S. 8th St.
Police said there were no other people in the vehicle, but there was a cat. The Humane Society picked up the cat from the scene of the accident.
School District 11 locked down two schools for a short time during the incident. Swigert Middle School and Roosevelt Edison Elementary School were locked down for under an hour on Wednesday morning.
If you have any additional information about this case, you’re asked to call police at 719-444-7000.
