TAYLORSVILLE, Utah, Jan. 27, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — A suspect in an attempted homicide case in North Las Vegas was taken into custody by Unified Police officers late Thursday night after a harrowing chase through Millcreek and into Taylorsville.
UPD Lt. Brian Lohrke said police received a notice from North Las Vegas police saying they were looking for Ronny Withers, 35, a suspect in an attempted homicide.
Withers has family in parts of Nevada, California and Utah, so authorities in those areas were asked to be on the lookout for him.
Lohrke said one of Withers’ relatives notified UPD that he was in the Millcreek area, so officers in the vicinity immediately started looking for the van Withers was driving.
He was spotted at 4500 and State Street, and a stop was attempted, but Withers didn’t stop and a pursuit was initiated.
“They traveled all over the Millcreek area and into Taylorsville,” Lohrke said. “He stopped at 2080 W. 4700 South and then barricaded himself in the van and made threats to harm himself with a knife.”
Lohrke said it was well-known to the officers involved that Withers had made threats of “suicide by cop,” and he had access to guns and knives.
“Officers employed a lot of restraint in this deal, and did use some non-lethal methods,” Lohrke said, referring to the use of tear gas and a dog.
“(The tear gas) was very effective in getting him partially out of the van,” Lohrke said, “and a K-9 dragged him out to a safe place.”
Withers was taken to a nearby hospital to be evaluated and was then booked into jail. The Las Vegas police have been notified that he’s in custody.
Asked about the pursuit, Lohrke said spikes were deployed and punctured several tires on Withers’ vehicle, but he kept going. The pursuit went across several jurisdictions and involved a number of agencies. Lohrke said federal agents were out looking for Withers, as were officers from several UPD precincts.
“We knew what type of suspect we were after,” Lohrke said. “A very violent suspect, attempted homicide. We needed to get him off the street.”
Very sick sociopath