April 17, 2023
The Pocatello Police Department used a pair of Sunday-night advisories to inform the community of two unusual incidents that marred the weekend: a robbery-suicide on Saturday night, and a collision involving a firetruck on Sunday afternoon.
The Police Department’s advisory regarding the robbery-suicide says:
On 4-15-23 at 2226 hours [10:26 p.m.] a subject walked outside Mackenzie River Pizza at 4150 Pole Line Rd. He was wearing a mask and robbed an adult female at gunpoint outside the business before fleeing on foot with her purse, wallet, and cell phone. PPD officers responded and began searching for the subject in the last area where he was seen. Officers checked on a male in front of Costa Vida who turned out to be the subject involved in the incident. He fled from officers on foot toward Denny’s restaurant with a handgun. CPD [Chubbuck Police Department] and PPD officers gave chase on foot. The subject was surrounded by CPD and PPD officers who began challenging him to surrender. The subject immediately shot himself and was declared deceased at the scene. Detectives from PPD, CPD, and BCSO responded to assist with the robbery and death investigation.
A separate advisory gave the following information about the collision:
At 2:32 today [4-16-23] crews from the Pocatello Fire Department were responding to a fire in a resident’s backyard on Berryman. When Engine 2 was turning off Poleline onto Berryman, the Engine was hit by a white SUV carrying several occupants. One occupant in the SUV had to be extricated. All occupants in the SUV were transported to the hospital for treatment. No word on their condition. The three firefighters on the Engine are getting checked out by medical personnel. Both vehicles sustained heavy damage and had to be towed. The southbound lane of Poleline was temporarily shut down and has since been reopened. The Pocatello Police Department is investigating the crash. The investigation is ongoing.
