New Details in Bizarre Death of Nevada Hit-And-Run Suspect
. A suspect in a hit-and-run was driving a stolen pickup when he was chased by the police and crashed. He died in the crash.
SPARKS (Nev.) (AP). Police investigating the bizarre Nevada hit-and run death of a suspect driving a stolen truck say he likely died from a health condition after he had struck a cyclist -- who jumped in the fleeing pickup's bed before he crashed and ran away as the bicyclist chased him.
Sparks Police initially released a few sketches of details after Zayven Mergan died on Sunday. However, they didn't exclude the possibility that the bicyclist played a part in the death of the driver after he caught him up.
In a statement released on Thursday, the police stated that "all indications point to Mergan's death being due to a medical problem."
According to police, video and witness reports indicate that Mergan collapsed and died as a result of a physical altercation.
The statement stated that a preliminary medical examination conducted by the Medical Examiner’s Office showed no evidence of physical trauma which may have contributed to Mergan’s death.
The police are still investigating, and 'the case will remain open until final toxicology and medical examiners results' which could take several weeks.
The police statement released on Thursday included many details not found in the original report. This complicated chain of events began just before 5 pm, April 9, when emergency first responders reached the scene in west Sparks, east of Reno.
According to the original report, the Dodge Dakota driver fled on foot from the scene of the second accident a few blocks away from where he struck the bicyclist. The original victim was also seen chasing the suspect.
Police said that officers found the male bicyclist victim and the driver suspect within a few moments. Both men were taken to hospital. The suspect driver'succumbed' to his injuries and the cause and manner of death was being investigated.
Police said that a preliminary investigation indicated Mergan had begun to flee from the scene of the accident in a stolen pickup truck when the victim cyclist jumped into its bed to stop him.
When Mergan crashed for a second, he fled and the bicyclist was following him on foot. Mergan stopped after running for a few hundred yards.
The bicyclist was able to catch up to Mergan and verbally tried to convince him to remain in place for the authorities. Mergan threw a piece of equipment at the bicyclist, and then began to run on foot once more.
Police said that there was no intervention by police or use of force in this incident.