Carjacking suspect killed in hit-and-run while fleeing police in Austin

Vesmo Banks, 25, was seen exiting a car that was reported stolen. He fled and was hit by a car in the 800 block of South Cicero Avenue, police say.

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Gunfire was exchanged during a robbery Saturday morning at a gas station in River North.

Sun-Times file

A carjacking suspect running from police was struck and killed by a hit and run vehicle Tuesday afternoon in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side.

Twenty-five year-old Vesmo Banks, was seen exiting a car about 2:30 p.m. at an auto cleaning service in the 800 block of South Cicero Avenue, Chicago police said. He was the only person in the car, which been reported stolen.

Members of the Vehicular Hijacking Task Force tried to stop Banks, but he ran a “short distance” into the street, where he was hit by a semi truck, officials said. The truck driver did not stop.

Banks was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:55 p.m., according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Both the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) and the CPD’s Major Accidents Unit are investigating.

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