COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. — Collier County deputies say a 30-year-old man swam across a canal to get away from law enforcement as they tried to make a traffic stop Wednesday morning in Naples.
Authorities encountered Aurelio Reyes when they clocked his pickup truck going 77 miles per hour in a posted 45 miles per hour zone on Livingston Road near Radio Road, the Collier County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post.
As he stopped his pickup truck, Reyes ran east on Radio Road near Kings Way, law enforcement says. Deputies and K-9 and aviation units then searched for the 30-year-old.
After a long search, a flight crew from the sheriff's office reportedly spotted Reyes swimming in a lake off Foxfire Lane.
Deputies say they then went toward the edge of the lake to arrest him.
“This was all very unnecessary,” Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk said in the Facebook post. “Instead of pulling over for deputies, this individual chose to step on the gas and flee, putting the lives of other motorists and deputies at risk. Thanks to great teamwork by our deputies, he will now be held accountable for his reckless and dangerous actions.”
Reyes was charged with fleeing and eluding and resisting arrest.
After authorities searched the pickup truck, they say that they found cocaine, narcotic paraphernalia and several open beer cans in the front seat. Reyes was also charged with possession of cocaine and possession of narcotic paraphernalia.
