LAKE CITY, S.C. — Authorities have made an arrest in one police pursuit that happened in Lake City on Friday, but are unsure if it was related to another one that cost a South Carolina officer his life.
The Florence County Sheriff's Office released a statement regarding a chase involving its own deputies that happened Friday after a carjacking in Lake City. Investigators said the suspect in the case carjacked a vehicle on Frierson Road in Lake City, entering it while armed with a gun and demanding the victim drive. At some point, investigators believe he pushed the victim out of the vehicle, causing that person minor injuries.
A short time later a deputy spotted a vehicle matching the description of the one that was stolen and pursued it. Ultimately, the deputy performed a Pursuit Intervention Technique (PIT) Maneuver near Olanta on Central Road. The driver, later identified as Jermaine Ryan M. Roberson, bailed from the vehicle after it ran into a ditch and then allegedly injured a deputy who was attempting to take him into custody.
However, what's still unclear is whether this chase was connected to one that took place a short time before that involved Lake City officers. The sheriff's office didn't provide details but said that it was after this chase that a Lake City officer, identified previously as Lt. John Stewart, had died.
For the deputy-involved chase, Roberson is facing charges of assault and battery in the first degree, carjacking, failure to stop for blue lights, and kidnapping.