SAN ANTONIO — A man was arrested in connection to an illegal dumping incident that lead to a high-speed chase which ended in a fatal crash last week, Bexar County authorities say.
John Yeates, 39, was charged with deadly conduct, a third degree felony Tuesday afternoon.
On September 11, the Bexar County Sheriff's Office was called to the 15200 block of Highway 181 for a vehicle crash.
Sheriff Javier Salazar said the crash was part of the aftermath of an illegal trash dumping incident that turned into high speed pursuit by two vehicles where gunfire was exchanged.
George Gomez, 36, was found dead at the the scene of the fatal crash. The orange truck was not on the scene when authorities arrived.
Later that afternoon, a patrol sergeant noticed an orange truck on the side of road with a flat tire. Authorities believe the orange truck sustained the flat tire during the shooting.
People inside the truck were questioned by authorities and discovered Yeates was involved with incident.
Salazar said, Yeates was a passenger in the orange Dodge pickup truck. Yeates and the driver stopped along Laguna Road to illegally dump trash onto a property.
Employees of the property owner stopped and confronted Yeates and the driver. During the confrontation, weapons were displayed, Salazar said.
The driver of the orange truck then fled the scene at a high rate of speed and was followed by some of the employees in two separate vehicles, according to BCSO.
Salazar said during the chase 911 was called. One of the vehicle's then stopped and another vehicle believed to be the one Gomez was inside continued to follow the orange truck.
Salazar said, the pursuit was several miles long and eventually the vehicles were separated. The vehicle with Gomez inside decided to return to the property. As they were returning to the property Gomez somehow lost control of the vehicle and crashed.
According to BCSO, Gomez died from injuries he sustained in the crash including a broken neck, broken back and possibly a heart attack. Authorities are unsure if the possible heart attack was a result of the crash or "due to the excitement of this whole incident." Gomez did not sustain gunshot wounds.
Salazar said the Fugitive Apprehension Unit had been looking for Yeates since that day. He was found Tuesday and brought in for questioning along with a suspect believed to have been driving the orange truck on September 11.
Gomez was found with a gun, authorities believe, he used to fire at the orange truck during the pursuit. A pistol was also found in the orange truck and Salazar said that weapon is believed to be the one Yeates used in the gunfire exchange.