Assailant Kills Self During Police Chase

A despondent 46-year-old Long Beach man died Tuesday night after firing a shot into his head as he rode his motorcycle on a freeway with police in pursuit, authorities said.

The incident culminated a series of events that began just before noon Tuesday when the man shot his ex-girlfriend at a Mission Valley hotel where she worked, police spokesman Dave Cohen said.

Norman A. Logan walked into the hotel on Waring Road at 11:45 a.m., hit a clerk over the head and walked into the office of his ex-girlfriend, Carol Koepke, 33, Cohen said.

He said Logan fired several shots into Koepke’s legs and took her purse, keys and car, which he later ditched at a spot where he picked up his motorcycle. The car was found in the 6500 block of Mission Gorge Road early Wednesday morning.

Logan was spotted by police about 12:15 p.m. riding north on Interstate 805 in Sorrento Valley. They flashed their overhead lights, Cohen said, and Logan, who was traveling about 60 m.p.h., slowed and began to pull his motorcycle to the freeway shoulder, then shot himself with a 9-millimeter automatic.

His motorcycle skidded into the freeway, snarling traffic, but no one else was injured, Cohen said.

Koepke was in good condition Wednesday at Sharp Memorial Hospital with three gunshot wounds to her legs, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Logan died at 11:30 p.m. at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, Deputy Coroner Jerry Hillbrand said.