By Madeleine List
The Charlotte Observer
FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. — A driver is charged with attempted murder after he trapped an officer in his vehicle during a traffic stop and began to drive toward a pole, according to Florida police.
Officers stopped the driver just after 3:15 p.m. on Feb. 25 and saw drug paraphernalia in the driver’s side door and a knife on the passenger seat, according to a release the Fort Walton Beach Police Department.
The officers tried to get the driver, later identified as Antonio Marquis Belle-Betts , 27, out of the vehicle, but he refused, the release says.
As officers tried to remove him, Belle-Betts trapped one of the officer’s arms in the vehicle and put it in drive, the release says. A backup officer tried to free the trapped officer as both were dragged down the street, according to police.
The trapped officer’s arm became free, but the other officer got stuck in the vehicle with Belle-Betts as he accelerated, the release says. Belle-Betts took over the officer’s shoulder radio and told him, “You’re going to die today” as he drove toward a power pole, according to police. He also began striking the officer in the face, police said.
The officer took control of the steering wheel and hit the brake with his foot before the vehicle crashed, the release says.
When the vehicle came to a stop, backup officers tased Belle-Betts and arrested him, police said.
Both of the officers and Belle-Betts were treated at a hospital for minor injuries, according to the release.
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Belle-Betts faces multiple charges, including attempted felony murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing and eluding, possession of a controlled substance, giving a false name while being detained, resisting arrest without violence and depriving a law enforcement officer of a means of communication, the release says.
He is being held on a $1.125 million bond, according to Okaloosa County Jail Records.
Fort Walton Beach is about 160 west of Tallahassee.
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