A 45-year-old man was arrested after he was accused of hitting an unoccupied Ocala Police Department patrol vehicle with a stolen semi-truck and fleeing the scene.
According to OPD, on Monday, December 26, at around 5:15 p.m., a semi-truck that was reported stolen out of Georgia struck an unoccupied patrol vehicle near the 1300 block of SE 17th Street in Ocala. The driver of the semi-truck was identified as Edward Dial.
OPD stated that law enforcement quickly located the semi-truck after the collision and a vehicle pursuit was initiated. During the pursuit, Dial was followed across Marion, Lake, and Orange counties.
Multiple agencies assisted with the pursuit, including the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Eustis Police Department, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. In addition, helicopters were utilized to track the semi-truck’s location throughout the pursuit.
The semi-truck eventually stopped near the Orlando VA Medical Center in Lake Nona, which is approximately 90 miles away from where the pursuit began. Dial proceeded to barricade himself, and he was eventually taken into custody by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team, according to OPD.
“Thank you to all agencies involved in the pursuit. We’d like to especially thank the Orange County Sheriff’s Office for their tremendous work in safely apprehending the suspect,” stated the Ocala Police Department on its Facebook page.
Dial was arrested and transported to Orange County Jail. He is facing multiple felony charges for fleeing and eluding with disregard to public safety, leaving the scene of an accident with property damage, and grand theft of a motor vehicle.
A court date has not been scheduled yet, according to jail records.