Police chase in Pittsburgh may be connected to earlier attempted robbery, assault

PITTSBURGH — 11 Investigates has exclusive new details on a wild police chase that ended in a crash in Beltzhoover.

Channel 11 first showed you a video Thursday that shows a car flying over a hillside and smashing into a telephone pole.

>> Exclusive video shows rollover crash at end of police chase in Beltzhoover

The chase ended dramatically when the car flew off a 10-foot wall and down a hillside onto its roof Thursday morning on Zara Street.

Pittsburgh police now say that car matched the description of a vehicle used in the robbery of the Sky Spa in Overbrook on Monday night where an employee was pistol-whipped.

>> Employee pistol-whipped during attempted robbery of Overbrook business

Police say they were in the area Thursday morning looking for that car when they spotted it parked and saw a man get into it.

They attempted to pull it over after they said the driver, identified as Kenneth Gaines, went through a stop sign.

According to the criminal complaint, Gaines began to “drive reckless[ly] at a high rate of speed.”

He made multiple turns onto different streets and ended up on a dead-end street.

That’s when the car went over the wall, hit a utility pole and flipped onto the roof.

Gaines was not seriously hurt.

Police said they found a gun and a magazine clip they believe Gaines threw out the window before crashing.

Gaines, who has prior convictions for guns, drugs and assault, is not allowed to have a firearm, according to police.

He’s now charged with illegally possessing a firearm, along with reckless driving fleeing police and receiving stolen property.

No charges have been filed in connection with the Sky Spa assault and robbery.

Police said that any possible connection to that case is still under investigation.

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