Published on Sunday, February 4, 2007
in the St. Augustine Record

Police pursue tractor-trailer through 9 counties

Police chased what they say was a stolen tractor-trailer in a low-speed pursuit that began Friday night on Interstate 95 and spanned nine counties.

The chase, which began in Miami, finally ended early Saturday in Flagler County. The tractor-trailer, which had been driven over several sets of police stop sticks, could not move any farther.

The driver "was still trying to move forward" when the bald tires caused the trailer to drag along the roadway, Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. J. A. Wright said at the scene.

Wright said the truck was initially stolen from a Pilot truck stop in Fort Pierce. It was taken to Miami, where police spotted the truck and began the pursuit.

He said the chase moved at low speeds because the tractor-trailer's tires were flattened early on, limiting how fast it could move. Several law enforcement vehicles participated in the chase, and no one was injured.

Once troopers had the driver in custody, they opened the back of the trailer and found boxes of women's clothing from Kohl's, a department store chain, Wright said.

The driver's name and the charges he faces were not available Saturday from FHP.

In August 2006, a similar incident came through the St. Johns County area when a Miami man allegedly stole a truck from a Kingsland, Ga., truck stop. The suspect, Orestes Mirabal, 43, drove south on I-95, changed tractors near County Road 210 and continued driving south, according to a St. Johns County Sheriff's Office report from the incident.