He took a quick break from the police chase to shoot up heroin in his car, cops say
Sometimes when that jones comes on you just gotta give in to it.
At least that seems to be the case for a Florida man who was wanted for grand theft and burglary charges in Silver Springs. John Quincey Stephens was fleeing from deputies in a car and injected himself with heroin during the chase, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, which posted video of the police chase and apprehension on its Facebook page.
On Monday, Detective Jason Hunt, a property crimes detective, went looking for Stephens, 30, and found him at a family member’s home.
Stephens took off in a car, the Ocala Star-Banner reported, which led to a police chase that went on for miles and came to an end back where it started — at a home in a wooded area off the road.
Stephens is seen running from the car, hops a fence, and is run down by a K-9 deputy and his police dog, Tipster.
“I was ... I’m on drugs and I didn’t know what I was doing,” Stephens is heard telling officers as he’s on the ground, with Tipster holding him down by his arm and shirt. As officers pull the cuffed man to his feet he says, “You hear me? Hey buddy, sir? I’m on drugs and I want to apologize, man.”
Stephens told the arresting deputies that during the pursuit, he injected heroin.
In addition to the charges Stephens was already facing, new charges were added. These include fleeing and eluding a law enforcement officer, two counts of resisting arrest without violence, driving on a suspended license, possession of heroin — deputies found the drug in his car — and aggravated assault with a weapon, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Stephens had one more stop to make before going to jail, where he remains with no bond until his court date in January — the hospital so that he could be treated for the dog bite.
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This story was originally published November 30, 2017 at 11:24 AM with the headline "He took a quick break from the police chase to shoot up heroin in his car, cops say."