A San Jose teenager who was about to be pulled over for speeding took officers on a bizarre beach chase Tuesday when he swam hundreds of yards into the ocean before eventually surrendering on shore.
Cody Keeton, 19, was driving a white BMW south on Highway 1 in Marina -- a small beachside town just north of Monterey -- when a California Highway Patrol officer clocked him driving more than 100 mph in a 65 mph zone, a CHP spokesperson said.
Keeton -- the only person in the car -- swerved into the Marina State Beach parking lot before he hopped out and led officers on a chase across the sand for 15 minutes, according to Robert Lehman of the CHP's Monterey office.
Keeton, pictured below at right, jetted through sand dunes -- some of the tallest sand mounds on the Central Coast -- then jumped into the water and swam several hundred feet away from the shore, Lehman said.
Authorities later discovered that Keeton had an existing felony warrant out for his arrest in San Jose. Lehman said he did not know what the warrant was for.
The Marina Police Department, the U.S. Coast Guard and the California Department of Recreation and Parks were called out for help, and authorities were prepared to make a water rescue.
Keeton swam for nearly 25 minutes, Lehman said.
“We want these things to end in a peaceful resolution, and we couldn’t just leave him out there in the water,” Lehman said. “He was treading water for some time.”
By the time a Coast Guard boat was ready to scoop Keeton out of the water, he turned around and swam back to shore. He gave himself up to authorities on the sand, Lehman said.
After being taken to a nearby hospital for hypothermia, Keeton was arrested and booked at a Monterey County jail for felony evasion of an officer.
Keeton is currently awaiting arraignment, Lehman said.
Photo Credit: Monica Nguyen/flickr