Police say that a Minnesota man went to great lengths to avoid being detained on a DUI charge, but his quest to evade capture failed.
According to the police report, an unnamed 28-year-old man from Detroit Lakes was stopped by police on Monday after authorities learned that the driver may be impaired. Frazee police located the vehicle and were in the process of calling a second unit to the scene while field sobriety tests were being performed when the driver took off running. Police chased after the driver and attempted to subdue him with a Taser, but the driver was able to escape towards the Otter Tail River. The report suggests that the suspect jumped into the river to hide among the cattails, eventually burying himself in the mud in an attempt to evade capture.
Hiding In The River
Officers eventually lost track of the driver, but they quickly launched drones in the area to continue the search. After hours of hiding, the suspect eventually made his way back to land, where he was quickly apprehended by authorities. However, he once again fled into the river, but he was stopped before he could shake police a second time.
The driver has been charged with:
- Driving while impaired
- Fleeing a peace officer
- Obstruction of justice
- Felony violation of a court order
We’ve dealt with clients in the past who made the poor decision to flee from police, but we’ve never had a client jump in a river and hide in the cattails to avoid arrest. As we’ve said in previous blogs, fleeing from police is only likely to make your situation much worse, especially if police already have your vehicle and personal information. Even if you get away for a day or two, police are going to track you down, and the criminal charges you’ll face will be much more severe. Don’t try to run and make matters worse. Own your mistake, connect with an attorney and work to avoid a worst case scenario instead of making the problem bigger.
If you need help fighting a criminal charge or handling a previous criminal matter, reach out to Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
