A man led police on a chase from Murrells Inlet to North Carolina before officers were able to apprehend him, police said.
Camilo Quiroga Diaz, 35, of Surfside Beach is charged with grand larceny and failure to stop for blue lights. He was being held at the Georgetown County Detention Center as of Sunday evening.
According to a Georgetown County Sheriff's Office press release, deputies responded to the Waccamaw Community Hospital around 8:30 a.m. and learned that Diaz, a patient at the hospital on mental commitment papers, walked away from the facility.
Witnesses told police Diaz was seen walking down U.S. Highway 17 bypass in the Murrells Inlet area. Deputies attempted to take him into custody, but Diaz ran and police chased him on foot.
Diaz got into a marked Georgetown County Sheriff's patrol car and led police through Horry County to Highway 904 west of Tabor City, N.C., where N.C. Highway Patrol took him into custody.
Georgetown County Sheriff's deputies were assisted during the chase by the S.C. Highway Patrol, Horry County Police Department, Columbus County Sheriff's Office and the N.C. Highway Patrol.
The case is under administrative review as to the sheriff's deputy's actions before, during and after the vehicle was stolen.
Copyright 2014 - The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.)
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
