CLEVELAND — Cleveland police confirm its accident investigation unit was called for a chase involving Parma officers that ended in a serious crash. It happened around 2 p.m. Thursday in the 4300 block of Pearl Road in Old Brooklyn.
Officials told 3News two people were taken to the hospital, one from each car involved. Parma authorities later confirmed Monday that the suspect, 30-year-old Columbus native Kenneth James Lemons, had died at MetroHealth Medical Center from his injuries.
According to Parma police, officers in a marked cruiser first saw Lemons' black Ford Fusion speeding eastbound on Brookpark Road near West 33rd Street at almost 100 miles per hour. The officers followed the car at "quite a distance behind" before discovering Lemons had crashed head-on into a silver Chevrolet Traverse on Pearl Road around Woburn Avenue in Cleveland.
"I was standing and I see the black car speeding down," 12-year-old Michael Pissos, who lives nearby and saw the whole thing happen, said. "It hits the white car, the white car spins out, it crashes, then I see it on fire."
It was Lemons' vehicle which caught fire, and police say officers pulled him unconscious from the car before he ended up dying at the hospital. The driver of the Traverse — a 40-year-old woman — was also taken from the scene via ambulance, but her injuries have not been deemed to be life-threatening.
Just a block away from the incident earlier this month, a stolen Kia crashed into another car, killing 20-year-old Janet Reyes. Michael Pissos was on that scene, as well.
"It's sad that people keep dying from these little kids stealing cars thinking it's cool," he lamented.
He also shared a message for other kids his age.
"You're going to end up dead or killed or in jail," he declared. "The 'Kia Boyz' need to stop, they need to stop. All of them need to stop."
Authorities have yet not indicated if this pursuit also involved a stolen car, although a witness told authorities his vehicle was also struck by Lemons' Ford on Brookpark near State Road. The Cleveland Division of Police's AIU is currently looking into the matter.
EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story indicated both people injured in the crash were men and that both were in critical condition. This was based on early information from Cleveland police but has since been updated.