Man Drives Off 100 Foot Cliff in New York During Police Chase

A police chase in New York, that looks like something straight out of The Dukes of Hazzard, took a very dramatic turn late Monday morning. In what was described as a "high-speed chase" that lasted 45 minutes, involving a suspect and their vehicle plunging off a cliff that was over 100 feet high

The New York Daily News says that the entire incident spurred from an alleged domestic dispute.

This cannot be confused with another dramatic chase(s), that allegedly saw the same suspect lead officials on two pursuits in less than a month. One of the alleged chases took the suspect over state lines from Pennsylvania back into New York, says police.

Suspect Drives Off 100-Foot Cliff in New York 

The New York Daily News says that Southold Town Police were called Monday to reports of a man allegedly slashing his ex-partner's tires. Soon, the chase was on, says The Daily News, as the suspect drove off at a high rate of speed.

But this was no ordinary police chase. Southold Police Chief Martin Flatley told the Daily News and Newsday that the suspect from Florida, "zig-zagged between Southold’s jurisdiction and neighboring Riverhead", while “making U-turns, going down side streets.”

See Also: Officials Say New York State Man Just Out of Jail Leads Police on Chase

NBC says that speeds reached over 100 MPH, as the man led officials "back and forth" all over the eastern part of Long Island.

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But as three police cruisers and even a helicopter continued to chase the 56-year-old suspect from The Villages, Florida, police said he was coming up on the end. Literally.

Police told NBC that the speeding suspect turned onto a road in Greenport, and headed toward the water, and did not stop. "He knew what was at the end of that road. He never touched the brakes, never did anything, went through the guardrail.”

This was when the unthinkable happened, as the man then allegedly drove off a 100-foot high cliff and landed in Long Island Sound in 3 to 5 feet of water, according to Spectrum News.

Police say he miraculously survived.

The Daily News says the haphazard suspect was arrested and charged with 2nd-degree criminal contempt, 3rd-degree criminal mischief, an "array of traffic-law violations and unlawful fleeing", as well as two outstanding warrants that had been already issued for his arrest,

See Also: New York State Man Arrested Twice In Just Four Hours