Man dies after falling 30 feet while running in front of UHP

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Highway Patrol says it has opened a protocol investigation into a critical officer-involved incident after a man fell 30 feet to his death while fleeing from state troopers. West Valley Police are leading this investigation.

According to the Utah Highway Patrol, around 8:03 p.m. Sunday, several people alerted them to a man running through traffic on Interstate 15 near 600 North in Salt Lake City. Police searched the area several times without finding the person.

At approximately 9:06 p.m., officers found the pedestrian in the northbound lanes of the highway and asked him to stop. Instead, the man would flee from the soldiers.

The highway police then tried to slow down traffic in the area and arrest the man. But as he fled from officers on the northbound 600 North exit of I-15, he jumped over a concrete barrier.

After several attempts to get the man to obey, a Taser device was used to stop him from getting back onto the road. The man would then fall 30 feet from the ramp into three feet below.

Officers from multiple agencies attempted life-saving measures on the man, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim's name was not released.