By Tim Leeds/Havre Daily News/tleeds@havredailynews.com
A Havre man is being sought for questioning about a beating in Billings, police there said today.
Billings police Capt. Dave Hinkle said Chase Strike, 24, is a suspect in the Sunday beating of Jacob Chavez, 18. Chavez died in a Billings hospital Tuesday afternoon, and an autopsy is being conducted, Hinkle said. Chavez had been in the hospital since suffering head injuries Sunday.
Strike has not been charged in connection with the Billings incident.
Strike is charged with felony and misdemeanor assault in the beating of two men in North Havre on Feb. 10.
Havre Assistant Police Chief George Tate said today that Havre police are on the lookout for Strike. The department has heard rumors he was in Havre, but they are unconfirmed, Tate said.
Tate added that the department also has heard that Strike was spotted in other Montana cities.
One of the conditions of Strike's release on the charges in Hill County was that he remain in Hill County, Tate said.
Hinkle said witnesses told the police that Strike and Chavez "exchanged words" at a residence in Billings on Sunday. The two stepped outside, and "from there it's not real clear what transpired," Hinkle said.
Chavez was discovered outside the residence with head injuries, and was transported to the hospital, Hinkle said.
He said the police have not issued a warrant for Strike's arrest at this point, but that could change depending on the results of the autopsy and the investigation.
Strike faces charges of felony and misdemeanor assault in state District Court in Havre in connection with the beatings of two men in North Havre on Feb. 10. One of the alleged victims was flown to Great Falls where he was treated in the intensive care unit of Benefis Healthcare. The other was treated and released from Northern Montana Hospital.
Strike was sentenced in 1998 to five years in the state Department of Corrections for a conviction on a charge of criminal endangerment.
People with any information about Strike's location are asked to call the Billings police or other any law enforcement agency.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this story.
