A Pittsburgh man was charged after a hit-and-run crash on Parkway West, Allegheny County, that resulted in a Butler trooper getting hit by a passing vehicle.

Jakji D. Cush, 24, fled the scenes of two vehicle crashes — the one on Parkway West and another on the Fort Pitt Bridge in Pittsburgh — on Thursday, Aug. 24, according to charging documents.

State police based in Pittsburgh and Moon Township police charged Cush in three separate cases. The charges include felony theft, misdemeanor accidents involving property damage, cruelty to animals, false report and several traffic citations.

The first case, filed by state police, was in connection to the theft of a tow truck involved in the first vehicle crash, which occurred around midnight on Parkway West, Robinson Township. The second set of charges were also connected to that crash.

Lastly, Moon Township police charged Cush with misdemeanor false reports after his initial report of the accident allegedly included falsified information about being carjacked.

Trooper Josh Osche, of Troop D, stopped to help at the crash involving Cush’s vehicle and a tow truck on Parkway West that night.

While on scene, he was hit by passing vehicle, according to his mother, Butler County Commissioner Leslie Osche.

The driver of the tow truck, identified as Blair Johnson, told police Cush’s vehicle was driving erratically behind him, and hit the truck on the driver’s side.

Police said Cush’s vehicle came to rest facing the wrong way in the left lane. He was seen fleeing the scene into the woods nearby, according to documents.

A dog was found in the back seat of Cush’s vehicle, police said.

According to Lt. Adam Reed, a spokesperson for state police out of the Harrisburg office, Josh Osche stopped at the scene shortly after it occurred.

Though off duty, Leslie Osche said her son put on a reflective vest, called 911, and was setting out flares along the roadside when he was hit by a passerby in the left lane.

The tow truck driver involved in the crash pulled Josh Osche off the road to safety, Leslie Osche said.

Court documents said Cush later returned to the crash scene and stole the tow truck.

Police said Cush then crashed the truck on the Fort Pitt Bridge in Pittsburgh and fled the scene by jumping from the bridge onto a walkway for Point Park Park, 15 feet below.

According to documents filed in Moon Township, Cush contacted police around 3:50 a.m. Thursday. During the call, Cush said he had been carjacked, which caused the crash on Parkway West.

Police said Cush told them when he got into his car at 9:50 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 23, a man was in the back seat. Cush told police he believed the man was pressing a gun to his neck.

Documents showed Cush told police the carjacker demanded money, and Cush began driving to an ATM in Ingram, Allegheny County.

Cush told police he crashed the vehicle near Robinson Township because the carjacker threaten to shoot him. Police said Cush also reported fleeing into the woods and being picked up by a passerby.

According to documents, Cush told police he “did not want to see the carjacker arrested or charged with any crimes,” and assured officers his account was accurate.

When police investigated Cush’s vehicle at the site of the Parkway West crash, a car seat and dog were found in the back seat. Documents showed police did not believe there was room for a person in the back seat of the vehicle, as Cush had described.

Cush was taken into custody Tuesday, Aug. 29, documents showed.

The crash is still under investigation. According to Reed, charges were not filed against the driver who is allegedly responsible for the pedestrian crash.

This story was updated Aug. 31, 2023 to reflect that the driver involved in the pedestrian crash is not facing charges. A previous version of this story cited Reed as saying charges were pending.