Homicide victim's vehicle crashes into Biloxi house during police pursuit

BILOXI -- A vehicle wanted in connection with a Jackson County homicide earlier Tuesday crashed into a house on Popp's Ferry Road during a pursuit with Biloxi police that evening, officials said.

Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell said the gold 2004 Chrysler Pacifica mini-van -- that police had asked for the public's help in finding -- belongs to the man found dead earlier today on a dirt road near the St. Andrews neighborhood.

Two people were in the SUV when it crashed into a house about 6:30 p.m. near Popp's Ferry Road. One of the occupants stayed in the vehicle while the other fled on foot but was apprehended soon thereafter, Ezell said.

Authorities would neither confirm nor deny if the occupants are suspects in the homicide.

“We don’t want to jump the gun, but it looks pretty promising,” Ezell said of the arrests and recovery of the victim’s vehicle. “We are very much interested in talking to them.”

The occupants were in police custody Tuesday night at an area hospital where they were being treated for injuries suffered during the apprehension.

The sheriff said deputies intended to execute a search warrant on the vehicle Wednesday morning.

The Biloxi Fire Department responded to a report of the SUV on fire at the crash scene, but when firefighters arrived the vehicle's engine was smoking but not on fire, Fire Chief Joe Boney said.

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 7:41 PM with the headline "Homicide victim's vehicle crashes into Biloxi house during police pursuit ."