The Florida man is not known for having the best judgment.
But one is in a league of his own.
And a shirtless Florida man got into a confrontation with police that resulted in one wild chase.
A shirtless man steals a cop car and goes on a wild chase in the Florida Keys
The Florida Keys are known for being a vacation destination where tourists can kick back and relax in the sun.
Rock legend Jimmy Buffet built a lifestyle and musical sound around the laidback lifestyle he led in Key West, Florida.
Not everyone in the Florida Keys is enjoying the easygoing tropical lifestyle.
One crook in Monroe Country, where the Florida Keys are located, led police on a wild chase that involved multiple stolen vehicles.
Monroe County Sheriff’s Deputies received a panicked call from the daughter of 52-year-old Armando Lopez in Key Largo, which was referenced in the Beach Boys song “Kokomo.”
A shirtless Lopez was allegedly trying to murder his 30-year-old former girlfriend.
“My dad is in my house hitting my mom to death,” Lopez’s daughter said during a 911 call.
Lopez beat his ex-girlfriend and tried to strangle her during the confrontation.
He put a rag in her mouth with a cleaning chemical on it.
Lopez told her that “today would be the day she dies.”
Monroe County Sheriff’s Office sergeant James Hager arrived on the scene to arrest Lopez.
But the shirtless Florida man attacked Hager and tried to take his gun from his holster.
Hager tried to use his Taser on Lopez but failed to hit him.
Lopez knew that he had to get out of there, so he stole Hager’s SUV.
“He just stole my patrol car!” Hager said on a bodycam video of the incident. “He’s running northbound. Lights are on. He tried to take my gun from my holster.”
The chase is on for a stolen police car
Lopez took off in the stolen Monroe County Sheriff’s SUV as he tried to escape from the law.
He was clocked driving at over 100 miles per hour while the lights were flashing on his stolen cop car.
But he realized that he would eventually be spotted in the stolen vehicle so he came up with a plan.
Lopez pulled over a 46-year-old woman on the highway and stole her SUV.
He ran up to the door of her car and told her to get out.
The woman thought that she had been pulled over by law enforcement.
Sheriff’s deputies continued to chase Lopez in the woman’s stolen SUV as he tried to make his getaway.
But his erratic driving caught up with him.
Lopez wrecked the SUV and flipped it over in the crash.
He was left pinned in the overturned vehicle when sheriff’s deputies found him and arrested him.
Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay was “relieved” no one was hurt in the chase.
“It is a reminder of the dangers law enforcement officers routinely face while simply doing their jobs,” Ramsay said.
Lopez faces more than a dozen felonies including hit and run, fleeing from the police, and multiple traffic violations.
His days of going for a joyride are at an end.
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.
