Driver Swam Out Of Car Driven Into Cuyahoga River: Police

CLEVELAND — For hours on Monday, crews scoured the Cuyahoga River looking for a vehicle that had reportedly driven into the waters. Police didn't know where the driver of the vehicle was, or if they were safe. On Monday night, the driver turned himself into police.

Callers first started reporting a vehicle in the river at 2 a.m. on Monday. Witnesses said a vehicle was seen sinking into the waters near the Flats neighborhood in downtown.

Police said the driver was a 43-year-old Cuyahoga Falls man. He turned himself into police on Monday evening, approximately 14 hours after the crash.

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The man told police he thought Elm Street would carry him across the river. However, the street ends at Riverbed and the man's 2018 Jeep Compass was carried into the Cuyahoga River.

Police said the driver remembered swimming to shore once the vehicle began to sink. The Cleveland Division of Fire and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources used sonar to search for the Jeep, eventually locating the vehicle.

The Cuyahoga Falls paid to have the Jeep pulled from the river, via a private towing service, police said.

Cleveland Police said the man is being charged with reckless operation, failure to control, and driving on a one-way street.