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Kevin Lamont Sneed, 40, of Louisville, was shot and killed after police said he stole a marked Louisville Metro Police cruiser during a robbery investigation, drove it into the Ohio River and climbed out with a handgun.

The pursuit began about 12:30 a.m. on Dec. 22, 2008, after officers moved in on two men tied to a string of armed robberies, most recently a holdup at a Wendy's on Taylorsville Road, according to Louisville Metro Police. One of the men, later identified as Robert Keith Thornton, 43, sped off and ran red lights before he surrendered near the old Bashford Manor Mall.

As officers took Thornton into custody, the second man slipped away and climbed into a police cruiser the officers had stepped out of, then drove away, Chief Robert White said. "The officers had gotten out to approach their car, and he jumped in that car," White said.

Officers chased the stolen cruiser out of Louisville and across the Ohio River into Jeffersonville, Indiana. The man drove the car into the river near Rocky's, a restaurant on West Riverside Drive, police said. The recording tied to the case is police radio traffic between officers during the chase, not a 911 call.

The man climbed out of the water holding a handgun and ignored commands to drop it, White said. "They commanded him to drop his gun, and he didn't do it. He brandished it at them," the chief said. Six officers opened fire. Sneed was pulled from the water and taken to University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead of multiple gunshot wounds.

The Jefferson County coroner's office identified him as Sneed. The six officers who fired were placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting was investigated. Investigators later said the two men were linked to dozens of armed robberies dating back years.