Troopers: 4 high schoolers hurt after chase ends in crash in Hickory; driver killed

HICKORY, N.C. — A man was killed and four high school students were hurt in a deadly crash following a police chase Wednesday night in Hickory, troopers said.

Channel 9′s Dave Faherty learned the students were in the wrong place at the wrong time when the suspect crashed his car at the intersection of McDonald Parkway and Springs Road in northeast Hickory.

Police were chasing a stolen vehicle, north on Springs Road, after it was spotted in an apartment complex about a mile from the crash site. The deputy chief said the driver circled around that parking lot before taking off.

“He was sitting right here with his blue lights on. All I saw was ... then he took off. And then you heard a screech and a crash and that was it,” said witness Jennifer Walsh, who saw police at the apartment complex.

After a short chase, the car collided with a Jeep, causing it to overturn. The students who were hurt in the Jeep had the green light and were heading through the intersection when they were struck, according to State Highway Patrol.

“I looked up just in time and it looked like an explosion. The impact was tremendous. And I saw sparks and then saw it slide into the store,” witness Lisa Lozano told Faherty.

The driver of the stolen vehicle, later identified as Bradley Swink, 30, was thrown from the car and died at the hospital, officials said.

Catawba County paramedics said the students were taken to a local hospital for their injuries.

The students go to Fred T. Foard High School, and Faherty learned three of them are members of the school’s soccer team and were heading home after eating.

Their coach, Scottie Goforth, said he rushed to the scene of the crash.

“Just getting that phone call that no coach, no teacher or parent wants to receive. Huge thoughts and prayers for both the players and their families and for the family of the person in the other vehicle as well,” Goforth said.

Investigators said after the wreck, they learned Swink was wanted on multiple felony warrants, including assault with a deadly weapon and habitual felony. Police said Swink had been arrested several times before but kept getting out of jail on different bonds.

No further information has been released. Return to this story for updates.

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