MIAMI (WSVN) - A man is behind bars after police said he swiped a car off a dealership lot and led officers on a high-speed pursuit.
The ride-off occurred at Tropical Chevrolet in Miami Shores on Friday afternoon.
A car salesman said the man arrived at the dealership looking for a new car.
“Got the car from the lot, drove it up to the front. I was showing him the features…” he said.
During the showing, the salesman said he was duped, and the driver seemed interested in a different kind of test drive.
“And as I was closing the back door, he hopped in the driver’s seat and drove off,” he said. “I was like, ‘He totally stole the car.'”
The dealership immediately contacted police to report the crime.
According to police scanners, the man took a ride to Miami Beach and kept driving even as Miami Shores Police officers closed in behind him.
“Attention all units, it’s going to be a black Chevy Tahoe, unknown tag at this time,” said the dispatcher.
The salesman said the dealership was tracking the man using the vehicle’s tracking device.
“We looked at our tracking device, and he was going down the street, and the police ended up catching him within like 10 minutes,” he said.
The man kept going, increasing his speed with every passing minute.
“He’s traveling at a high rate of speed,” an officer said on police scanners.
Ultimately, the driver didn’t get far and was stopped and arrested on 82nd Street, east of Biscayne Boulevard.
7Skyforce hovered above the scene as officers placed the driver in the back of a police unit.
The stolen SUV was returned to the dealership. A tow truck moved the suspect’s car away from the dealership parking lot.
As for the salesman, he said it was his second week on the job, and now he has quite a story to tell.
“Everybody told me that it’s not that common… I’m just surprised that it happened to me,” he said.
As of late Friday afternoon, authorities have not released the man’s identity.
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