Wrong-Way Driver Led Deputies On Lengthy Chase

A black 2002 Dodge Durango 4x4 pickup created quite a stir on U.S. 301 Tuesday when three people simultaneously called the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office at 9:30 p.m. to report it was heading north in the southbound lanes of U.S. 301.

Motorists reported seeing the vehicle just south of County Road 674 and deputies swung into action to stop it. A uniform patrol deputy was the first to encounter the vehicle and “began to parallel the suspect vehicle from the proper lane with his emergency equipment activated in an effort to alert oncoming motorists,” an email from the sheriff’s office said.

All available patrol units in the area were sent to stop southbound traffic from driving into the truck’s path. The aviation unit was also deployed.

Despite all the law enforcement activity, the truck continued north in the southbound lane and “drove straight through the red traffic signals at Big Bend Road,” the email said. “At County Road 672, the suspect vehicle crossed the median back onto the northbound lanes as the driver began to throw numerous unknown items out of the vehicle.”

At that point, deputies were ordered to fall back and await air support, but “the suspect vehicle quickly crossed the median again back into the southbound oncoming traffic.”

Since the driver showed no signs of letting up, deputies deployed stop sticks between Rhodine Road and Symmes Road on US 301, the agency said. “The suspect vehicle's front right tire was deflated by the action but the vehicle continued northbound without stopping.”

In the area of Murphy Road, the man was seen “intentionally driving directly toward the path of oncoming traffic and were forced to initiate a Precision Immobilization Technique (PIT) that caused the suspect vehicle to spin around and temporarily stop.”

The chase wasn’t quite over.

As deputies tried to surround the truck, its driver rammed a marked patrol unit “in an attempt to escape,” the email said. “Deputies quickly positioned their vehicles to prevent the suspect vehicle from getting around the marked units and arrested the driver without further incident.”

No motorists, residents or deputies were injured in the chase. Three sheriff’s office vehicles, however, did suffer minor damage.

Once inside the vehicle, deputies found a 1-pound bag of a white, granular, powdery substance that was packaged similar to narcotics, the email said. The substance could not be identified at the scene, but will be sent for testing.

The driver Derek Wayne Hyde, 20, has been charged with aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, fleeing and eluding, reckless driving and possession of drug paraphernalia. Additional charges are pending, including the results of a DUI investigation. Hyde, the agency said, refused to provide blood alcohol samples or urine.

Image via Shutterstock

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