He led police on long chase. When tires fell off, he said he was running from cartel, SC cops say
One stolen car. Five South Carolina counties. Four criminal charges.
What do these things have in common? A reported death threat from a Mexican drug cartel.
David Bruce Sanders Jr., 45, is accused of leading multiple law enforcement agencies on a high-speed chase while driving a stolen car Friday, according to the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office.
The reason the Union man gave to law enforcement for the chase? Sanders said he was running because the “Mexican drug cartel are trying to kill him,” according to the sheriff's office, greenvilleonline.com reported.
The incident began just after 1:30 p.m. when a Buick LaCrosse was stolen in Greenville County and sheriff's deputies used GPS to track it to Spartanburg County, according to foxcarolina.com.
A Spartanburg County deputy spotted the Buick and attempted to pull the car over, but Sanders ignored police blue lights and initiated the multi-county high-speed chase through the Upstate, wyff4.com reported.
The chase left Spartanburg County, and Union County Sheriff's deputies joined the pursuit as it entered their jurisdiction, according to wspa.com.
During the chase, sheriff's deputies said Sanders exceeded 100 mph, ran multiple red lights and was driving erratically, greenvilleonline.com reported.
As the chase moved from Union County to Chester County, the chase slowed down as the Buick reportedly blew a tire, according to wyff4.com.
The chase continued into York County, where the Spartanburg County deputy who had been in pursuit from the start was forced to stop to refuel, foxcarolina.com reported.
While putting gas in his patrol car, the deputy was told that a car had crashed nearby after a collision with a Pacolet Police Department officer who had been in pursuit from the early stages of the chase, causing tires to fall off the Buick, according to wspa.com.
Sanders was arrested by York County Sheriff's deputies and charged with reckless driving, driving under suspension (1st offense) and failure to stop for blue lights and receiving stolen goods (value of $10,000 or more). He was charged with reckless driving by multiple law enforcement agencies.
Once Sanders was in custody, he told authorities he had stolen the car and run from law enforcement because, "the Mexican drug cartel are trying to kill him," according to wyff4.com.
He was taken to the York County Detention Center, where he remains in custody on $11,500 bond.
This story was originally published April 23, 2018 at 12:01 PM with the headline "He led police on long chase. When tires fell off, he said he was running from cartel, SC cops say."