LIBERTY — Girard’s Tyler Welch Jr., 30, who was chased by Nells and Liberty police Friday afternoon after Wells robbed a Girard store earlier Friday, is dead, the Liberty Police Department said.
A press release issued by Liberty said Wells died early Saturday from a gunshot wound sustained when police surrounded a town home on Youngstown-Hubbard Road.
Capt. Ray Buhala of the Liberty Police Department stated that Nile police were chasing Welch, who was in an SUV, sometime before 3:16 p.m. on Friday. Welsh’s car headed for Liberty.
Liberty Police have been notified by Trumbull County dispatchers that Wells is wanted on a warrant from Gerard for aggravated robbery.
Liberty officers joined the pursuit, which continued in Youngstown, but the pursuit in Youngstown was ended after Welsh showed complete disregard for public safety, the release said.
At around 5:10 p.m., Welch was seen driving the same blue Ford SUV in Liberty. He failed to stop the officers and led them on another short chase that ended in the driveway of the abandoned house on Youngstown-Hubbard Road.
Then Welch got out of his car, put a gun to his head, and entered the house.
Officers established a perimeter around the home and called for assistance from the Mahoning Valley Crisis Response Team. One of Liberty’s negotiators with the response team requested via intercom that Wells get out of the house, but he did not.
At 6:14 p.m., officers heard a single gunshot from inside the home and found Wells with a gunshot wound. The Liberty Fire Department immediately provided assistance to Wells, and he was transported to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital in critical condition, the release said. He died early Saturday.
Girard Municipal Court has an aggravated burglary charge as of Friday on file in favor of Wells. It was filed by the Girard Police Department.
previous accident
Wells was also the subject of a chase on June 16, 2024. That chase also passed through Liberty and Gerrard and ended in an accident in Gerrard, according to Vindicator filings.
Liberty police said Welch, then 29, was charged with disobeying a police officer’s orders, possession of a weapon while intoxicated, improper handling of firearms in a motor vehicle and a traffic violation.
The accident began with an officer hearing tires screeching on Belmont Street at approximately 2:03 am. 16 June. Police saw the car stopped on the road and Welch appeared to signal the officer to drive around. Thinking the car is broken, the officer turns on the overhead lights. This is when the driver pulled away at high speed. The officer followed the car, which was veering down Trumbull Street, according to earlier reports.
As the car pulled into Gerard, the driver turned off his headlights and began to pull away from the officer. The report stated that the car swerved off the road, crashed into a mailbox, and crashed into a tree and bush. Welch was trapped inside the car by the tree falling on the car. Welsh was taken out after firefighters removed the tree.
Welch was taken by ambulance to Saint Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital.
Girard municipal court records indicate Wells did not contest non-compliance, a misdemeanor, in January 2024. He was placed on probation until November of 2023. It is unclear what happened to his other charges.