A driver going over 100 mph in Martin County was arrested after authorities were able to disable his car—but not before he tried to get away on foot, the sheriff’s office said.
Markel Tillman, 33, was flying down State Road 710 in Indiantown on Tuesday when deputies said they saw him “driving aggressively at speeds exceeding 100 mph, forcing other vehicles off the roadway.”
When authorities tried to stop him, he fled, weaving through traffic and “attempting to lose Deputies” before he took Southwest Martin Highway toward Palm City, “continuing to drive recklessly.”
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said deputies spotted him again near Allapattah Road. That’s when they used stop sticks, a spiked tool that deflates tired, to stop the vehicle near Interstate 95.
Tillman then bailed out and “tried to finish the getaway on foot,” the sheriff’s office said. Bodycam video shows how deputies took him down “a few short yards” away.
Authorities said Tillman is facing multiple felonies after deciding “to take a high-speed joyride through Martin County on one of our most dangerous roads [State Road 710].”
He was charged with fleeing and eluding, aggravated fleeing with injury or damage, operating a vehicle at 100+ mph, driving while license suspended or revoked, and other charges. He was also booked on an out-of-county warrant.
“This time, he did not live up to the sayings on his shorts, ‘Don’t Burn Out before You Get to the Top,’” the sheriff’s office said in a news release. “He in fact did burn out, not making it out of Martin County. Followed by, ‘Go Hard or Go Home.’ Markell found himself going too hard and in a new home, The Martin County Jail.”
