A Leesburg man was arrested for fleeing from a deputy after speeding away from a traffic stop caused by his suspicious behavior.
A deputy was on patrol when he saw two men, one of which was later identified as 23-year-old Jamey Gardner, in the area of Griffin Road and Herald Drive in Leesburg around 2:25 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27, according to an arrest report from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
The pair urgently scattered behind a black BMW SUV once they saw the deputy’s car go by the apartments at which they were parked. They moved quickly to the driver’s side of the vehicle, meaning the deputy was only able to see them from the waist up due to the hood of the vehicle being in the way. Gardner did not have his face covered with his hood up, but the other did, the report said.
At that point, the deputy turned around due to the suspicious behavior. This was when he saw the vehicle run a clearly marked stop sign. It proceeded to drive by the deputy, and he saw Gardner in the driver’s seat with the masked man in the passenger seat, the report said.
The deputy subsequently initiated a traffic stop at U.S. Hwy. 27 and William Street where the vehicle pulled over in a parking lot. Once he got out of his vehicle, he saw the passenger throw something into the back seat. He proceeded to walk around the back of his patrol car to speak with the passenger only for the vehicle to speed off, the report said.
Dispatch was immediately notified of the situation as the deputy watched the vehicle drive extremely recklessly back onto the highway. A subsequent search of its tag revealed it was registered to SIXT car rental. Law enforcement called the company which was able to use remote surveillance tactics to find their car, the report said.
At about 6:30 p.m., the company notified the deputy that the vehicle was driving back toward the original incident location near Citrus Boulevard. The occupants spotted the deputy again and came to an abrupt stop where he saw a drastic change in the pitch of the vehicle. It then made an immediate right turn into the apartment complex from earlier, the report said.
In the complex, the vehicle drove in the wrong lane separated by a raised median. The deputy followed behind it until it parked and Gardner got out. He tried to walk inside the apartment but was detained at that point, the report said.
Gardner stated he knew what happened and claimed it was not him before the deputy mentioned anything about the earlier incident. He said several times that it was not him, then claimed his car was stolen. He advised that the deputy could check the cameras to see it was not him who ran. When asked how he knew the car had ran, he did not want to talk anymore, the report said.
He was arrested on charge of flee and elude law enforcement officer. He was transported to Lake County Jail and released after posting $5,000 bond.