Ex-policeman linked to Dallas freeway shootings

DALLAS (Reuters) - An ex-policeman who shot himself in the head as Texas police tried to arrest him is the main suspect in a freeway shooting spree this week that terrified motorists and left two people dead, police and media said.

Brian Smith, formerly a Utah state trooper, was on life support in the hospital. He shot himself after police in the north Texas city of Garland pulled his vehicle over on Tuesday.

Monday's shooting spree covered highways in Garland and nearby Dallas.

A man was shot and killed in Garland during the evening rush hour. Shortly after, three shootings occurred within minutes on a highway leading into Dallas, leaving a truck driver dead and one person injured.

"We are waiting on some ballistic tests and he is the main suspect in our murder," Garland police spokesman Joe Harn said on Wednesday.

Local media reported that Dallas police believe Smith was responsible for the killing of the truck driver.