You never know when a routine traffic stop will turn into a wild foot chase. That’s when happened in Florida when a man, later revealed to be a fugitive from Ohio, was seen driving recklessly and decided to flee when deputies attempted to stop him. The pursuit first began as a car chase, but the man then jumped out of the vehicle and tried to escape on foot. He then broke into multiple residences, stealing a fire extinguisher in one of them, and later dove into the water. That, however, turned out to be a mistake.
The passenger of the SUV was also arrested
On September 4 at around 12:30 p.m., deputies responded to a man, later identified as 28-year-old Brandon Lee May from Ohio, driving recklessly in a Dodge SUV near Mile Marker 83 and tried to initiate a routine traffic stop of the vehicle, according to a post from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) on its official Facebook page. The Florida deputies say May was travelling 63 miles her hour in a 45-mph zone at the time, but that was only the tip of the iceberg for his eventual list of offenses.
During the attempted stop, May allegedly sped away in the SUV and into the parking lot of a Public grocery store where he “continued to drive recklessly, endangering pedestrians.” Trying to switch tactics, May got out of the vehicle and fled on foot. Meanwhile, the passenger in the car, 28-year-old Anthony Shane Morris of Florida, got out of his spot in the car and took over the driver’s seat. This switcheroo didn’t fool the deputies for very long.
Meanwhile, May ran toward a nearby plumbing business but failed to gain access to the building. This led him to head into a residence where he stole a fire extinguisher. He pulled the pin and continued to run away, going over a fence and fleeing into another residence. Apparently out of options, May then jumped into the Gulfside water.
But as we’ve reported many times, trying to flee by going into the water is usually not the wisest decision, since it just slows the person down and allows the cops to surround them. The deputies had attempted to shock May with a Taser multiple times during the chase. But apparently because he was in the water, they finally did so successfully. May was taken into custody, though he resisted deputies by kicking them and pulling away. Even when he was treated at Mariners Hospital in Tavernier, he continued to resist arrest.
May was later transported to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital for a broken wrist and stayed there until the following morning while he was still in custody.
It’s unclear whether Morris attempted to speed away in the Dodge SUV while he was in the driver’s seat. However, he did misidentify May when he spoke with the deputies, though Morris says he only met May about five days before the incident occurred.
Deputies searched the vehicle and discovered two handguns. Fortunately, there were no life-threatening injuries reported during the chase.
The list of charges that May faces is extensive: fleeing and eluding while endangering pedestrians, burglary while armed, grand theft, possession of a firearm by a felon during the commission of a felony, driving with a suspended license, and resisting arrest with and without violence.
Deputies also learned that the 28-year-old has warrants out for his arrest in Ohio for battery by strangulation, robbery, and violation of probation. That partially explains why May tried to flee, despite the risk of racking up more charges during the pursuit.
Meanwhile, Morris was taken to jail and has been charged with accessory after the fact.
