A 23-year old man drove straight into Lake Michigan while fleeing police on Saturday in Traverse City, Michigan. The driver went down the boat launch at Clinch Park Marina, which ended up submerging the Ford F-150 in West Grand Traverse Bay. The alleged failed getaway culminated in the arrest of two 23-year olds who had been driving the pickup truck while evading the police, according to WBPN/WGTU.
It all started when a sheriff’s deputy spotted the Ford F-150 driving erratically along a road overlooking the bay and attempted to stop the truck. The driver did not heed the deputy and just kept going, prompting other police officers to join the pursuit. Per Up North Live:
According to Lieutenant Jon Morgan with the Grand Traverse Sheriff’s Office, it started when a deputy was patrolling on Woodmere Ave. and noticed a truck driving erratically. The deputy tried to pull the truck over for a traffic stop, but the driver of the truck ignored the deputy and sped away.
Lt. Morgan said the truck driver drove through several stop signs as he was pursued through downtown Traverse City neighborhoods. When the deputy caught up to the truck, the driver stopped, got out of the truck and ran away. While the deputy chased after him, the passenger in that truck moved to the driver’s seat and drove away.
That’s when Captain Adam Gray with the Traverse City Police Department said his officers got involved. The officers followed the truck to Clinch Park Marina. Capt. Gray said when the truck entered the parking lot it drove down the boat launch and into the water.
The authorities claim the first driver tried to get away on foot, and that the second driver was the one who plunged the pickup into the bay. After going into the parking lot of the marina, the driver turned down the boat ramp and into the water. Besides the second driver, there were also passengers in the truck, according to WBPN/WGTU, but it’s unclear how many.
It’s also unclear what exactly the driver was trying to do by going straight down the boat launch. Jalopnik’s EIC and very own naval expert Rory Carroll says the water is shallow in that area, perhaps enough to drive to the beach. But he adds that the water there is shallow except where the boat launch is, since that area is dredged out so boats can, you know, launch.
Both drivers were arrested following the truck’s dip into the bay. The Grand Traverse Sheriff’s Office arrested the first 23-year old driver for “flee and elude and operating under the influence.” And the Traverse City Police Department arrested the second 23-year old driver, who had originally been a passenger, for the same charges as the first driver.
