SLED is asked to investigate drowning death of man fleeing deputies

A man drowned in a private pond Wednesday night after allegedly trying to elude a license check point set up by the Sumter County Sheriff’s Department about 9 miles south of Sumter.

The man, who has not been identified, was within sight of the checkpoint about 7:25 p.m. when deputies saw his vehicle “stop and turn quickly onto a side road.” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in a news release.

Deputies gave chase when he stopped his car on Havenwood Drive, jumped out and ran into a wooded area between homes, the sheriff said.

During the pursuit, the deputies “heard noises coming from a small pond and spotted the man in distress about 25 feet from the shore.”

One of the deputies dove into the pond, the sheriff said, but turned back when the water proved too cold. EMS and divers were called to the scene and “recovered the man’s body in about 15 feet of water.”

The State Law Enforcement Division has been asked to investigate the death, Dennis said.

This story was originally published March 1, 2017 at 11:55 PM with the headline "SLED is asked to investigate drowning death of man fleeing deputies."