NC man kills Colorado gas station owner, crashes stolen SUV 1,000 miles away, cops say
A North Carolina man accused of killing a gas station owner was captured 14 hours later after a 1,000-mile cross-country drive in the victim’s vehicle, police say.
The fatal shooting of the Colorado convenience store owner occurred around 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 5, according to the Wheat Ridge Police Department.
The suspect, identified by Indiana State Police as 26-year-old Shawnathan Deangelo Chance, “attacked the clerk, shot him, then fled in the victim’s vehicle,” police in the Denver-area town said.
Wheat Ridge police said the owner was found dead inside the business. A motive for the killing wasn’t disclosed.
“We can surmise it was a robbery, but we have no idea why this individual decided to shoot the clerk,” Wheat Ridge Police Department spokeswoman Joanna Small told KUSA.
Law enforcement agencies across the country were notified to be on the lookout for the vehicle, which was spotted about 14 hours later in southern Indiana.
An Indiana State Police trooper in Posey County was patrolling Interstate 64 when he saw the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder linked to the Colorado homicide, according to a news release. The trooper tried to stop the vehicle, but the driver fled and exceeded speeds of 90 mph, Indiana State Police said.
Chance, from Dunn, North Carolina, eventually lost control of the vehicle and it rolled over several times off the side of the road, according to police. He was uninjured.
Chance was arrested and charged with murder, resisting law enforcement, possession of a stolen vehicle and reckless driving, state police said.
“This is a terrible tragedy; please keep the family and friends of the victim close to your hearts,” Wheat Ridge police said. “This type of crime is extremely rare in Wheat Ridge, and we know this is shocking for our tight-knit community.”
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