SBI Identifies Man Shot And Killed After Three-County Chase
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The suspect has been identified as 26-year-old Matthew Whitley. The SBI identified the officers involved in the shooting as Chris Tate and Joshua Bryant of the Kings Mountain Police Department. The SBI says they were able to recover body camera footage and dash camera footage from multiple agencies involved in the case. SBI agents will present the case facts to the District Attorney upon completion.
Original Story Posted October 19th:
KINGS MOUNTAIN, SC– “I rolled down my window asking what was happening, and about that time, I heard distant pops, pop, pop, pop,” said witness Justice McCranie.
When McCranie found himself in the middle of a police chase on Lloyd White road in Clover, he caught the suspect’s blue car on cell phone camera after a deputy he was talking to sped off.
“I hear over his radio, ‘Shots fired! Shots fired,” and so then he ran his car down to the scene that was happening.”
The chase started around 8:20 Thursday morning with a hit and run accident in Gastonia. Gaston County Police put out an all-points bulletin for the suspect’s blue car. Highway Patrol spotted the car and continued the chase into South Carolina where they tried to stop him.
“When deputies exited their vehicles to attempt that stop, the suspect in the vehicle fired shots from the vehicle,” said York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson.
The suspect then tried to get away and hit a York County Sheriff’s car, then reversed his vehicle down Lloyd White Road where he encountered more Clover Police and York County Deputies. He had another collision and exchanged more gunfire and then fled back to North Carolina.
People living off Cleveland Avenue in Kings Mountain say they heard the commotion but didn’t know what was going on. Kings Mountain Police say the suspect got out of his car by an Exon and ran towards a Church.
“My understanding is he was firing shots as he was running and he came around the corner of the building and pointed his weapon at two of my officers,” said Chief Jerry Tessneer of The Kings Mountain Police.
