Pennsylvania

Man Fleeing Police Gets Run Over by Bulldozer, Officials Say

The man has not yet been identified.

A Pennsylvania Game Commission employee driving a bulldozer accidentally ran over a man who was fleeing from police on state game lands in Berks County, according to investigators.

The employee was operating the bulldozer in the area of Snyder School and S. Garfield roads in Penn Township around 10 a.m. Monday when he spotted a car parked off the road in a field. Bernville police were then called to the scene.

Police say the arriving officers spotted two men who came out of a thick underbrush and then fled on foot. One of the men, later identified as 54-year-old David Brook Light, was captured and taken into custody by the Bernville Police Chief while the second man escaped, Pennsylvania State Police said.

State police and Pennsylvania Game Commission resources then arrived at the area around 11 a.m. A Pennsylvania State Police helicopter then spotted the second man, identified as 51-year-old Gregory Longnecker, in thick underbrush but then lost sight of him after attempts to hail him were unsuccessful, officials said.

The helicopter pilot then gave directions to the employee on the bulldozer as they continued to search for the second man. A State Trooper was also on the bulldozer as it drove through the thick underbrush. They then stopped the bulldozer and Longnecker was found dead underneath the back of the vehicle, officials said.

Light was taken into custody and charged with various drug offenses as well as trespassing, police said. An autopsy for Longnecker was set for Tuesday afternoon.

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