Florida

Murder Suspect Dead After Wrong-Way Crashes, Deputy-Involved Shooting on I-95 in Palm Beach County

Authorities shut down northbound lanes of highway after two killed in crash following earlier shooting

A man killed a woman then sped the wrong-way on Interstate 95 in Palm Beach County, causing multiple crashes before he was shot and killed by a sheriff's deputy Wednesday morning.

The incident began when the suspect, identified as 22-year-old Hugo Steven Selva, shot 26-year-old Nicole M. Novak in the parking lot of a shopping center in Lake Worth around 9:30 a.m., put her in a car and fled the scene, Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office officials said.

Officials said about 15 minutes they began receiving calls of a black Nissan Rogue speeding southbound in the northbound lanes of I-95.

The suspect caused three crashes on the highway, as a deputy and Florida Highway Patrol trooper responded and reached the scene of the last crash in Lantana, between West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale, officials said.

A murder suspect was shot and killed by a deputy on I-95 in Palm Beach County, officials said.

The deputy and trooper approached the car and the trooper used a Taser on Selva, but it didn't work, officials said.

That's when the deputy, fearing for their lives, opened fire on the suspect, killing him, officials said.

"The deputy said that he was in fear for his life and the life of a trooper and opened fire and killed the suspect inside," Palm Beach Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.

Footage shot by a witness showed the intense moments on the highway after the final crash, with deputies surrounding the car with guns drawn and shouting at the suspect.

The body of Novak was also found in the car, officials said. Social media posts showed that the two were possibly dating.

Officials said Selva was responsible for another shooting in Boynton Beach earlier Wednesday and another that happened Tuesday night in West Palm Beach.

Officials said firefighters responded to the crash, which involved six to eight vehicles, shortly before 10 a.m. and found one car on fire. The fire was put out but two people were hospitalized, officials said.

"Through hard work and diligence here and a timely response by FHP and our deputy that we have averted this guy not only crashing into a whole bunch more cars on this side of the road, but escaping here and going on to do whatever he’s going to do which is obviously involving shooting people," Bradshaw said.

The northbound lanes of the highway were closed near the scene from Lantana Road to 6th Avenue and remained closed all day before reopening around 4:15 p.m., authorities said.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the deputy-involved shooting.

Just hours earlier, a man was shot and killed while driving on I-95 in Boca Raton, about 20 miles south. Few details have been released on that shooting but officials said it's not connected to the Lantana shooting.

Check back with NBC 6 for updates.

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