CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man was charged and arrested on Thursday in connection with crash that killed a man and injured two police officers in August, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said.
Police arrested 80-year-old Robert Erwin Reiser. He was charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle and misdemeanor assault inflicting serious injury.
Two officers were investigating a report of a stolen car when they were hit by a passing motor home, CMPD said in August.
It happened on the ramp from the outer loop of I-485 to Mount Holly Road.
One of the police cruisers rolled down an embankment, suffering heavy damage. An officer was pinned inside his cruiser and had to be extricated. A second officer was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
A third person, 29-year-old Brian Battle, died at the scene.
Battle, who was from Elm City, North Carolina, was the person who reported the stolen vehicle to police.
The driver of the motor home, now identified by police as Reiser, was injured in the crash as well. At that time, formal charges were not pressed against him.
According to a police report, multiple vehicles were stolen from Centurion Eagle Auto Transport Southeast and Toyota Distributors in Elm City. The report says the vehicles were stolen from a business Smith Corners Boulevard in north Charlotte.
CMPD said Battle called police when he spotted a stolen car. It's unclear how Battle knew the car was in that location before calling police. While he was talking to officers on the shoulder, the RV exited I-485 and hit the police cars and Battle.
The investigation into this crash is still active and ongoing.
If your loved one was impacted by this incident, WCNC Charlotte hopes to make this process less painful with our More Than A Number initiative. With your help, we want to share who your loved one was with our viewers in North Carolina and South Carolina. When you're ready, fill out the form below or send us photos, memories and other details about them to desk@wcnc.com.
Any person who witnessed the crash or has information is asked to call Detective Kupfer at 704-432-2169, Ext. 1.
The public can also leave information anonymously by contacting Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600 or http://charlottecrimestoppers.com/.