Driver Dies After Crash While Fleeing Police on I-81

A Pennsylvania man died early Saturday morning after crashing his vehicle while attempting to flee law enforcement in Frederick County.

According to the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, the incident occurred around 2:30 a.m. on March 27 in the Clear Brook area along Interstate 81.

A deputy observed a silver Audi that matched the description of a vehicle wanted by the Winchester Police Department in connection with a violent domestic assault. The vehicle was first spotted on Martinsburg Pike (Route 11 North), where the driver was seen weaving through traffic before entering the northbound ramp to I-81.

As the deputy attempted to initiate a traffic stop, the driver accelerated sharply, ignoring both visual and audible signals. Authorities said the vehicle reached speeds exceeding 120 miles per hour as the deputy attempted to catch up.

The pursuit continued to Exit 321, where the driver took the ramp and briefly disappeared from view. When the deputy reached the end of the ramp at Hopewell Road, he discovered the vehicle had crashed through a guardrail and gone down an embankment.

Additional deputies responded and located the driver, who had been ejected from the vehicle and suffered severe injuries. The Audi caught fire following the crash, and emergency medical services and fire crews were called to the scene.

The driver was identified as 35-year-old Kevin Patrick Sullivan of Pennsylvania. Authorities confirmed he was the suspect in the earlier domestic assault reported in Winchester.

Sullivan was transported to Winchester Medical Center with life-threatening injuries, where he later died.

The incident remains under investigation.