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New details suggest two pursuits in Lake City at time that officer died

It's unclear, at this point, if the alleged carjacker arrested in one chase is tied to the one after which Lt. John Stewart died.

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.

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