FARMINGTON, Maine — A man died in a crash in Farmington on Monday after allegedly fleeing the scene of a child sexual assault investigation.
Joshua Burdin, 32, of Strong, struck a tree head-on and died at the scene, Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss said in a release Tuesday.
Officials had identified Burdin as a suspect after the Franklin County Sheriff's Office responded to a home in Strong around 5 p.m. Monday to investigate a sexual assault of a child, according to Moss. Burdin had already fled the home by the time officials arrived, Moss said.
Shortly before 6:15 p.m., a Franklin County deputy saw Burdin driving a 2006 Subaru Impreza in Strong and tried to pull him over, but he allegedly led deputies on a low-speed chase through Strong and into Farmington.
On South Strong Road in Farmington, the town's police department deployed spike strips. Burdin crashed into the tree after driving over the spikes, Moss said.
Burdin's body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for an autopsy.
The crash remains under investigation.