A radio interview with a Florida sheriff took an unusual turn when he joined a high-speed pursuit of a stolen vehicle Tuesday.
The interruption happened while Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood was talking on the Drew Garabo Live radio show about his stance against antisemitic groups in the state, WKMG-TV reports. However, the focus of the interview unexpectedly changed when Chitwood told the hosts that he was chasing down a suspect in a stolen vehicle along Interstate 95.
Video footage released by the sheriff's office switches between footage from the radio studio and the actual pursuit. The Florida Highway Patrol had been looking out for a pickup truck without a license plate that had been recklessly weaving in and out of traffic.
When troopers tried to pull over the pickup, the driver refused to stop and increased his speed. During the chase, the suspect reached speeds of up to 117 mph, swerved around lanes to avoid stop sticks and almost struck an Edgewater police officer, who dove out of the way to avoid the vehicle.
Stop sticks finally disabled the truck, and police apprehended the driver, Seth Potter, 22. Following the arrest, authorities recovered a firearm and found that the truck had been reported stolen to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Potter faces multiple theft and traffic charges.
“We’re good. We’re good," Chitwood told the radio hosts after the chase ended. "It was one of those things that FHP was chasing a car, and I just happened to be at the next exit where this son-of-a-(expletive) was coming."
