SHP: Driver dies in crash after fleeing from Fair Bluff Police

FAIR BLUFF, NC (WWAY) — The State Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly crash Saturday evening. Trooper Christopher Cannady says Fair Bluff police were attempting to conduct a traffic stop when the driver fled.

According to Cannady, 54-year-old David Lee Hemmigway exited his vehicle but then got back in the driver seat and drove away. Police then conducted a chase that led to Ice Plant Road off of Highway 76.

Cannady says less than a mile down the road, Hemmingway flipped his vehicle around a curve. Hemmingway was ejected from the vehicle and died as a result of the crash according to Cannady.

Hemmingway recently moved to Cerro Gordo from South Carolina. Trooper Cannady says it appears that he was not wearing a seatbelt when he fled police.

Alcohol is suspected to have played a role in this deadly crash according to SHP.