Suspect Taken Into Custody After Two Officers Aboard Helicopter Die In Crash Following Chase

23-year-old DeAndre Dwayne Bessye has been taken into custody after being a part of a fatal helicopter crash.

Reports indicate that Bessye was being chased in a 2014 Ford Mustang by police as he was traveling 135 mph. The pursuit also involved an air mission by the Baton Rouge Police Department.

Close to 3:14 a.m., on Sunday, an abandoned vehicle, now known to be the one that was in the police chase, was discovered.

Authorities say that Bessye was transported to a gas station that was close by, and then he had someone to pick him up.

Later on that morning, after receiving a phone call, authorities found the Baton Rouge Police Department helicopter that was involved in the mission, in a rural area. It had crashed, and two officers, Corporal Scotty Canezaro and Sergeant David Poirrier, lost their lives.

Now, Bessye has been apprehended and charged with manslaughter, aggravated flight from an officer, and obstruction of a highway of commerce.

His bond was set at $950,000.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has said that preliminary reports show that the officers on board the helicopter that was involved in the crash died following the “aircraft tail rotor that struck a tree and crashed inverted in a field.”

An investigation into the cause of the accident and why it took hours to find the wrecked helicopter are continuing.