A truck driver is in custody after fleeing a traffic stop and fatally striking a police officer investigating reports of a man on the back of the trailer.
The incident occurred at around 6 a.m. on Sunday, May 5th in Santaquin, Utah on Interstate 15 near mile marker 224.
According to Fox 13, Utah Highway Patrol received calls reporting a man standing on the back of a moving tractor trailer on northbound I-15. A Santaquin Police Officer and a Trooper located the tractor trailer 30 minutes later and conducted a traffic stop near mile marker 244. After pulling over, 41-year-old truck driver Micael Aaron Jayne fled the scene northbound in his semi truck before turning around and driving the wrong way on the highway. Jayne the struck the officer, his patrol car, and the trooper’s vehicle.
Jayne then fled the scene on foot.. The officer was pronounced dead at the scene and a “Blue Alert” was issued for Jayne. A “Blue Alert” is issued whenever an officer is killed or injured in the line of duty.
Jayne then stole a F-150 pickup truck in Sanpete County and was eventually located over 150 miles away from the traffic stop near Vernal. Police engaged him in a short pursuit before he crashed the pickup and was taken into custody.
The Utah County Sheriff’s Office will hold a procession on Monday, May 6th at 10 a.m. to return the fallen officer back to Santaquin. A press conference will be held at noon the same day. The officer has not yet been publicly identified.
