Car Crash, Chase Through Bunnell and Taser Shot End Fugitive’s 4-Year Run

Michael Anthony Ross, 24, has been on the run for four years on a probation violation linked to a conviction for armed robbery in Wisconsin. On Wednesday, his fugitive years ended with a car chase, a car crash, a foot chase and finally a Taser shot to the back that felled him in Bunnell.

Before noon Wednesday, a Flagler County Sherif’s deputy spotted Ross allegedly traveling at 82 mph in a 60 down U.S. 1 near Thunder Gulch in Bunnell. Ross was at the wheel of a gold-colored Chevrolet. The deputy followed and for a moment it appeared that Ross would stop, but he sped off instead.

“After I terminated my lights and sirens,” the deputy reported, “I observed the vehicle continuing to drive recklessly, changing lanes erratically, driving at speeds over 100mph and run the red light at U.S. Highway 1 and West 100.”

At that point the deputy reported seeing Ross lose control of the Chevrolet. It crashed into a tree in front of 309 North State Street.

Ross fled on foot. A body camera captured the foot chase from deputy Jayd Capela’s body cam, the deputy running a few lengths behind Ross, his Taser drawn. The deputy then fires and Ross falls near the railroad tracks.

“Stay there. Do not move. Do not move. Put your hands behind your back,” the deputy orders Ross, the Taser dart still clicking. Other deputies and law enforcement officers, including one from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, assist. One of them asks Ross if he needs medical assistance. He says he does. Ross is handcuffed. But when Collins asks him his name, he doesn’t answer. Another deputy later identified him with the Rapid ID system.

Ross was taken to AdventHealth Palm Coast to be medically cleared, then booked at the county jail on a felony fleeing and eluding charge, a misdemeanor resisting arrest charge and for driving without a license, plus his probation violation out-of-county warrant. He’s being held on $6,000 bond on the local charges, and on no bond on the Wisconsin charge.

“This is another great example of how technology and good police work can pair together to fight crime,” Sheriff Rick Staly said. “When a deputy initiates a traffic stop they never know what they are walking into. In this case, deputies caught a wanted fugitive who has been on the run for four years. I am glad no one was hurt by his reckless actions. Let this be a lesson to fugitives who think they can hide out in Flagler County. We will find you, you will go to jail, and we will use our technology to get you.”

See the video of the arrest below.