QUINCY, MASS. (WHDH) – The Norfolk District Attorney’s office has identified the man who stole a Rockland police cruiser and led authorities on two wild chases Friday before being fatally shot by a state police STOP Team member during a tense standoff in Quincy.
Eric M. Leach, 36, who had lived in both Brockton and Winthrop in the past, tried to get out of the crumpled cruiser with a patrol rifle in his hand near the BJ’s gas station on Burgin Parkway when the officer opened fire, Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey said during a news conference.
The rifle in the patrol car was fastened in a mount that can only be accessed by officers, but since Leach was in the cruiser for about three hours, he was able to bend away metal brackets the keep the weapon secured, Rockland Police Chief John Llewellyn said during a news conference.
Leach was taken by ambulance to Boston Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
About three hours earlier, police say he stole more than $300 in cash from a 7-Eleven in Rockland while armed with a handgun before fleeing into a nearby neighborhood.
Neighbors on Brookside Road told Toni Bono that Leach frantically tried to get into a number of homes and that he appeared to be in an agitated state.
“He said that he got jumped by two kids and then asked to come in and they all said no and then the last lady was like, ‘I’ll call the police,’ and when she said that, he ran to the woods,” she said.
A lottery winner who had entered the 7-Eleven to cash a ticket just moments after Leach fled was able to provide police with his description.
When an officer later tracked down Leach and ordered him to the ground at gunpoint, he said, “shoot me, shoot me,” and refused to comply with the order, according to Llewellyn. The officer then deployed a taser but it proved ineffective because Leach was wearing a heavy sweatshirt.
Leach was then able to escape on foot and stole the Rockland police cruiser before leading officers on a chase into Quincy, hitting several cruisers in the process, Morrissey said.
Llewellyn noted that one of the responding officers “forgot to lock his car” as he rushed to apprehend Leach.
An Abington police officer lost control of his cruiser during the chase and crashed into a utility pole.
Multiple agencies surrounded the Rockland police cruiser near Exit 42 on Burgin Parkway as a state police STOP Team and crisis negotiators responded to the scene.
But Leach was able to maneuver around the swarm of emergency vehicles and take off again before he was stopped near the BJ’s gas station when a pair of BearCats sandwiched the commandeered cruiser.
The situation temporarily impacted Red Line and commuter rail service and led to road closures in the surrounding area.
Llewellyn noted that Leach had a “lengthy criminal record” and is known to police.
Investigators in Rockland are continuing to search for a handgun that he was believed to have been in possession of during the robbery. Llewellyn added that Leach may have thrown the weapon out of the cruiser’s window during the pursuit.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)