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WATCH: Shackled fugitive caught by Volusia deputies after escaping in bounty hunter’s car

By Charles Frazier, WFTV.com
By Charles Frazier, WFTV.com

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — A fugitive from Connecticut was arrested in Volusia County Wednesday after a desperate attempt to avoid being captured.

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According to the sheriff’s office two bond agents found 31-year-old Dejon Torres at the Holiday Inn Express on Saxon Blvd. in Orange City.

Torres was wanted for failure to appear in court for serious drugs and weapons charges out of Connecticut, including use of a machine gun during a violent crime and operating a drug facility.

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With assistance from the Orange City Police Department, Torres was secured in handcuffs and leg shackles by the bond agents and placed in the back seat of their rented Chevy Tahoe. However, deputies say Torres managed to get into the front seat of the SUV and drive away, running over an Orange City police officer’s foot as he fled.

Shackled fugitive caught by Volusia deputies after escaping in bounty hunter’s car Dejon Torres, 31, charged with grand theft, resisting arrest, leaving the scene of a crash, reckless driving, and driving without a valid driver’s license, in addition to the charges he faced out of Connecticut.

According to an incident report, Torres sped along Saxon Blvd., nearly hitting another driver head-on, before losing control of the Tahoe and crashing into a tree in front of a home in Deltona.

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Torres then tried to run away on foot but was quickly tracked down by a Volusia County deputy with a K-9.

Torres was arrested and charged with grand theft, resisting arrest, leaving the scene of a crash, reckless driving, and driving without a valid driver’s license, in addition to the charges he faced out of Connecticut. He remains in the Volusia County jail with no bond set.

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The Orange City Police Officer whose foot was run over was not seriously injured.

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