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MINNEAPOLIS — A motorist died early Tuesday in a collision involving a Minneapolis police squad car that was pursuing a robbery suspect.

Police were pursuing a stolen vehicle linked to some commercial robberies when the squad car crashed into the victim’s vehicle and a third vehicle about 12:30 a.m., according to authorities.

The driver who died was rushed to North Memorial Health. The officer involved was also taken to the hospital.

Police spokesman John Elder said the suspect in the stolen vehicle was not involved in the crash and remains at large.

The State Patrol responded to the scene and is investigating. The Minneapolis Police Department will begin an internal investigation into the pursuit, Elder said.

The department’s policy states that officers can only give chase in situations where they believe a suspect has committed, or is about to commit “a serious and violent felony or gross misdemeanor.”

The policy also allows for a pursuit if the suspect’s driving is “so flagrantly reckless that the driver would pose an imminent and life-threatening danger to the public if not apprehended.”

This pursuit fit within that policy, Elder said.

“We are limiting what we can chase for, but these were obvious felonies,” he said.