By Tanasia Kenney
The Charlotte Observer
FAYETTE COUNTY, Ga. — A suspected porch pirate hid from cops by crawling into a storm drain, but his escape didn’t go as planned.
After more than 90 minutes underground, a 31-year-old suspect was plucked from the drain pipe in Fayette County, Georgia, wearing just his underwear, according to police body cam video obtained by WAGA.
The man was accused of swiping packages off residents’ porches before his car was involved in a crash, Sheriff Barry Babb told the station. That’s when he ran.
It all happened on July 26, per the suspect’s online arrest records.
McClatchy News reached out to the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and was awaiting a response.
At one point, the suspect ducked into the drain to get away. Video from the incident shows deputies spraying pepper spray down the manhole to coax him out.
When that didn’t work, authorities sent a police K-9 named Axe into the sewer line — first on a leash, and then untethered, WSB-TV reported. The man then shimmied his way to the other end of the drain with the K-9 at his heels, according to the station.
Deputies were there waiting for him and helped pull him from underground, body cam video shows.
The accused thief was checked for dog bites and treated for pepper spray exposure before being booked into the Fayette County Jail, WSB-TV reported, citing deputies.
He remained in custody as of Aug. 11 on nearly a dozen charges including theft by receiving stolen property, obstruction of officer and drug possession, online records show.
Fayette County is about 30 miles southwest of downtown Atlanta.
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