The daughter of a 53-year-old man who died late Monday night while running from police said her dad was no peeping tom.
Derek Cook, 53, from Warren, died Monday night a little after 10 at the intersection of 11 Mile and Greenfield, in Southfield. According to police, they were trying to arrest him for a report of stalking when he sped off, ran a red light, hit a car, and then crashed into a utility pole.
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Daughter of man killed while running from Berkley police said he was drunk and trying to help ex-girlfriend
The daughter of a 53-year-old man who died late Monday night while running from police said her dad was no peeping tom.
Joe Daniels works nearby and saw the crash. He said the damage was indescribable.
"There was a lot of damage. Too much to describe," he said. "I didn't know whether someone died or not but I saw the person's condition and they didn't look very well."
Video from the Mobile gas station shows lights from a Berkley police car chasing Cook and then the crash. CPR was given at the scene but Cook died at the hospital.
Berkley police told FOX 2 this chase started about a half a mile north, near Catalpa and Ellwood when they got a call about a stalking incident and were trying to arrest an alleged peeping tom. When they arrived, they saw a 2012 Chevy Cruz leaving the area.
They attempted a traffic stop but Cook kept going south on Greenfield until the crash.
Leah Deardorff, Cook's daughter, tells Fox 2 that he was called to the home on Ellwood by his ex-girlfriend who allegedly wanted help finding her 14-year-old daughter. Leah says her father was drinking. He got into an argument and the ex-girlfriend called the police.
"He's not a pervert, he was a good guy. He was stalking alcohol- that's what happens to people. That's why he ran from the cops. It's not because he was a peeping Tom, whatever you wanna call it. It's because he was drinking."
The other driver was not seriously hurt. Berkley police are still investigating.