Westmoreland man's gunshot death after police chase ruled a suicide

The death of an East Huntingdon man at the end of a high-speed police chase last week has been ruled a suicide, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office.

Ryan Michael Senko, 22, died of a single gunshot wound to the head.

Investigators had been working to determine whether Senko had shot himself or was killed in gunfire from state troopers Oct. 1 when the chase ended near his home just outside Mt. Pleasant.

Lt. James Shaw said Tuesday that state police had not received a final report from the medical examiner's office.

“The finding is consistent with our investigation up to this point,” he said.

Police were looking for Senko on a mental health commitment warrant obtained by his mother on Oct. 1. He recently had purchased a 9mm pistol, police said.

Police said Senko was despondent, in part, over a failed relationship and went looking for his ex-girlfriend, a student at the University of Pittsburgh's Greensburg campus.

University police located him on campus and state troopers and local police joined in the chase at 8:41 p.m., police said.

Senko led police on Routes 30 and 981 and into residential Mt. Pleasant at high speed until a trooper was able to bump Senko's sport utility vehicle to stop the chase. From the driver's seat, Senko raised a pistol and fired it. A trooper returned fire.

Senko was flown by medical helicopter to UPMC Presbyterian, where he was pronounced dead at 10:16 p.m.

No police officers were injured.

Senko was cited twice in September by campus police for harassing a female student there.

A 2010 graduate of the Southmoreland High School, he was employed as an assistant manager for the Finish Line in Greensburg. His funeral was held Monday.

Renatta Signorini is a staff writer for Trib Total Media.