A 48-year-old Belleview man was arrested after fleeing the scene of a two-vehicle accident.
On Sunday, January 2 at around 3:20 p.m., a Florida Highway Patrol trooper responded to a two-vehicle accident that occurred on County Road 464 in Ocala.
The trooper was informed that one of the vehicles had fled the scene following the crash, and the second vehicle was located in the Florida Credit Union parking lot located at 10 Bahia Avenue Lane.
Upon arrival at the credit union parking lot, the trooper observed a gold four-door sedan with damage on its right side.
The male driver of the sedan stated that he was traveling south on County Road 464 in the left lane, and a red Ford Ranger traveling in the same direction struck the right side of his vehicle. The driver of the Ford Ranger was later identified as Bucky Jim Nave.
After pulling into the parking lot, the driver stated that Nave offered to pay him up to $100 to fix the damages. The driver told the trooper that Nave appeared to be impaired and was slurring his speech.
When the driver told Nave that he was going to call law enforcement, Nave stated that he was heading home. Nave then got into his vehicle and left the parking lot.
The driver had written down Nave’s license plate number, and a computer search revealed a match for a 1993 Ford Ranger that belonged to Nave.
The trooper headed toward Nave’s residence. While the trooper was waiting to make a left turn onto SE 53rd Court from U.S. Highway 441, the trooper spotted a Ford Ranger that matched the description of Nave’s vehicle.
After performing a U-turn, the trooper got behind the Ford Ranger and activated the patrol car’s emergency lights and siren.
The Ford Ranger continued west on SE 113th Street and eventually came to a stop in the yard of Nave’s residence.
The trooper approached the vehicle and identified Nave as the driver. According to the FHP report, Nave had a difficult time remembering his last name, his speech was noticeably slurred, and the trooper could smell alcohol.
Two open containers of alcohol were observed inside Nave’s vehicle in the center cup holder, and Nave took several sips from the containers while speaking with the trooper. Nave’s eyes were observed to be bloodshot and watery.
Nave was unable to provide any information to the trooper regarding the accident. When asked if he would be willing to perform a field sobriety exercise, Nave declined.
A Belleview Police Department officer was on scene and arrested Nave. During the arrest, Nave stated he was going to “mind bend” and “thrash” the trooper, and he also added that “things were going to get bad.”
Nave was transported to Marion County Jail, and he was later released on his own recognizance. He is facing felony charges for leaving the scene of a crash and driving under the influence.
A court date has been scheduled on Tuesday, February 1 at 9 a.m., according to jail records.