Shreveport Police are investigating a strange motor vehicle accident that claimed the life of an elderly man Thursday afternoon in west Shreveport.

Just after 1:00 PM on April 13, 2017, Shreveport Police patrol officers were called to the 400 block of Woodrow Avenue to an accident where a man had been run over by a vehicle. As officers arrived at the scene of the incident, they learned that the victim, 66-year-old Leon Harvey Jr, was critically injured after the 1997 Ford van he was attempting to start somehow lunged out of gear and began backing up.

Cpl Marcus Hines, spokesman for the Shreveport Police tells us what investigators have determined:

As the vehicle continued to travel backwards, Harvey was caught between the driver’s side door and drug for a short distance beneath the driver’s side front wheel. Harvey, who was left in the roadway following the crash, suffered life-threatening injuries and was transported via ambulance to University Health hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. Shreveport Police Crash Investigators were summoned to the scene of the accident and began their probe into what took place. Speaking with witnesses at the scene, and based on evidence gathered there, it appears some form of mechanical problem with the van may have been a causative factor in the crash.

While no final determination has been made at this point, the investigation remains active.

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