Deputies find baby in back seat of car after high-speed chase, Florida sheriff's office says
A high-speed chase involving Florida deputies came to an end with a man in custody and a big surprise — a one-year-old infant in the back seat of his car.
The Marion County Sheriff's Office said it began when deputies went to pull over Jordan Skeene for a minor traffic violation.
"Deputies said this should have been a simple traffic stop. Deputies say the car had tinted windows and parts of the license plate, you couldn't see it," Marion Co. Sheriff's Lieutenant Paul Bloom said.
Bloom said that at first, it looked like Skeene was going to comply by pulling into a parking lot. However, he said, once there, Skeene repeatedly rammed a deputy's cruiser and then sped off, with the baby in the back seat.
Deputies were finally able to stop him by performing a PIT maneuver, which brought his car to a screeching halt.
Skeene then bolted from it, and that's when deputies made a surprising discovery.
"One of the deputies looks into the vehicle and realizes there is a child in that car, a small child, the whole time had been in the car," Bloom said.
After a brief foot chase, in which Skeene hopped several fences, he was taken into custody.
"Not only as a deputy, [but] these deputies as fathers, you realize 'Wow, this guy is the pinnacle of selfishness,' to put this child in such danger to get away from the cops," Bloom said.
The girl is now safe with her mother. Skeene is facing several charges, including child neglect, fleeing a law enforcement officer, probation violation, and possession of a firearm.
