MARION COUNTY, Fla. – A man arrested in Marion County is accused of leading deputies on a 100 mph pursuit over the weekend.
Al Johnson Jr., 35, faces a charge of fleeing/eluding police with disregard of safety to persons or property, records show.
Johnson was arrested early Saturday by deputies conducting proactive traffic enforcement in the area of SE Baseline and Maricamp roads, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said on social media.
After one deputy around 2 a.m. called out a vehicle that he reportedly saw exit the parking lot of a club at a high rate of speed and driving off recklessly, another deputy spotted the car in the 6400 block of SE Maricamp Road and attempted a traffic stop, according to the post. The driver, identified as Johnson, started to slow as if to feign a stop before quickly making a U-turn through the median and trying to drive away, the post states.
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Johnson went on to drive for several minutes — at times for speeds above 100 mph — making a series of U-turns and repeatedly running a red light at Baseline and Maricamp roads, the sheriff’s office said, adding the vehicle eventually hit a curb and almost struck a guardrail.
The vehicle was eventually and abruptly brought to the shoulder as a deputy was setting up for a P.I.T. maneuver, according to the post, at which point Johnson surrendered.
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