There is a really heavy cloud hanging over the Fort Bragg community right now. A young guy with his whole life ahead of him is suddenly gone. Colton Newman was only 20 years old when a split-second event on a North Carolina highway changed everything forever.
It all went down on Monday evening, July 6, 2026. Colton was out riding his motorcycle through Bladen County when things took a devastating turn. What started as a regular evening ride quickly turned into a high-speed police chase that ended up costing him his life.
Local law enforcement reported that deputies from the HEAT team were out patrolling along N.C. 87. They saw Colton fly past them going the opposite way at a very high rate of speed. The deputies turned their vehicles around right away to try and pull him over, which started the pursuit.
Things escalated fast on the blacktop. The speed of the chase reportedly hit a wild 130 miles per hour as Colton tried to get away. The chase came to a terrible end near East Arcadia at the intersection of N.C. 87 and Kennedy Store Road, right near the county line.
Colton’s motorcycle ended up ramming straight into another vehicle on the road. First responders rushed to the scene as fast as they could to help. Sadly, Colton suffered fatal injuries from the impact and passed away right there at the crash site.
The driver of the other vehicle was also hurt in the wreck. Emergency crews transported them to New Hanover Regional with injuries that were fortunately not life-threatening. Meanwhile, the highway had to be completely shut down in both directions for several hours while police handled the scene.
Now, family and friends are left trying to deal with an unimaginable void. People who knew Colton say his presence always brought real happiness and great memories to everyone around him. They are leaning on each other and choosing to remember the amazing person he was rather than how he died.
Leave a Reply