Gainesville Police arrested a man carrying 14.37 grams of meth Wednesday after he fled a three-car crash scene at The Polos apartment complex, officials said.
Officers arrested 29-year-old Shawn Rutig, of Leesburg, on hit and run charges, drug possession, trafficking in methamphetamine and fleeing police, according to an arrest report.
At 5:20 a.m., an officer saw Rutig driving his car without any headlights at the intersection of Southwest Archer Road and Southwest 34th Street.
The officer turned on his sirens and emergency lights to make a traffic stop, but Rutig accelerated.
Rutig then pulled off on Southwest 35th Place and drove through the apartment complex, located on 2330 SW 35th Place, according to the report.
An officer found Rutig’s car crashed into three parked cars near building 13, causing $11,000 in damages, according to the report.
Afterward, the officer saw Rutig get out of the car and flee while barefoot. About two hours after the initial attempted stop, another officer found Rutig walking in the 2000 block of Williston Road.
During questioning, Rutig said he owned the black Ford Escape but would let his friend borrow his car for methamphetamine.
A search of the Escape revealed a brown bag located behind the passenger seat containing 14.37 grams of crystal meth, baggies and needles, according to the report.
Officers booked him into the Alachua County Jail at 8 a.m. As of press time, his bond has not been set.
[A version of this story ran on page 1 on 5/15/2014 under the headline "Florida man flees crash, arrested with meth"]
