Boyfriend Of Missing Model Shoots Himself At End Of Police Chase

LOS ANGELES, CA — The boyfriend of a missing Hollywood model shot and killed himself Thursday at the end of a police chase in Corona.

Police have not identified the suspect nor addressed any possible role he may have had in the disappearance of 25-year-old Adea Shabani, an aspiring model from Macedonia. However, NBC4, citing several law enforcement sources, reported that the suspect was the boyfriend of Shabani. The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department advised the California Highway Patrol they were in pursuit of a stolen Toyota Tacoma as it traveled south on Interstate 15, CHP Public Information Officer Dan Olivas said. Authorities discovered the vehicle had possibly been used in a homicide that had occurred in Los Angeles County, Olivas said.

Shabani was last seen at about 11 a.m. on Feb. 23, near the 1700 block of Wilcox Avenue, between Hollywood Boulevard and Franklin Avenue, not far from her home, according to police. She has been living in the city for about two years, according to her friends. After she disappeared, her family hired a private investigator to find her and offered a $25,000 reward.

Thursday's chase began on Interstate 15 at Limonite Avenue in Riverside County. Two spike strips were deployed but the driver was able to continue evading and transitioned to the westbound Riverside (91) Freeway. The suspect exited the freeway at Green River Road and came to a stop on Rio Vista Street, south of the 91 Freeway, Olivas said.

As officers closed in, the driver shot himself with a handgun at about 8:45 p.m. in Corona, police said. He died instantly.

The suspect shot himself during a chase that began about 8:45 p.m. Thursday in Hesperia.

City News Service and Patch staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report. Photo courtesy of the LAPD