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Name Withheld

Age : 40

Gender : Male

Race : White

Date : 06/24/2026

Location : Business in Portageville

City : Portageville

County : New Madrid

State : Missouri

Agency : New Madrid Police Department; New Madrid County Sheriff's Office; Portageville Police Department

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Driver killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 06/24/2026, at approximately 12:00 p.m., New Madrid Police Department officers responded to a report of a man with a gun on Blades Drive in New Madrid. When officers arrived, the driver fled in an SUV. Deputies from the New Madrid County Sheriff's Office joined the pursuit as the driver continued toward Portageville.
As the pursuit entered Portageville, a Portageville Police Department officer deployed spike strips on U.S. Highway 61. The SUV drove over the spike strips, left the roadway, and crashed into a building in the 800 block of North U.S. Highway 61. Responding officers found the driver inside the vehicle with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene by the New Madrid County Coroner. No officers or bystanders were injured in the incident.
On June 29, 2026, New Madrid County Sheriff Joey Higgerson announced that investigators determined the driver had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound before the vehicle crashed. According to the sheriff, physical evidence established that the gunshot occurred prior to the collision with the building, making the crash not the cause of death. The New Madrid County Sheriff's Office is investigating the initial criminal incident, while the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop E is investigating the crash. No law enforcement officers fired their weapons during the incident.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.kfvs12.com/2026/06/24/sheriff-high-speed-police-chase-ends-crash-driver-pronounced-dead/
https://kzimksim.com/2026/06/25/a-high-speed-pursuit-results-in-an-accident-and-death/
https://www.kwoc.com/localnews/2026/6/24/65hz0gx7a0ttkykrwk36hh17ypiuef