LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — A 911 call about a stolen vehicle early Friday led to a wild morning for Lake County deputies.
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Around 6 a.m., the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said it received word from a resident that her truck had been stolen.
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Thanks to GPS information provided by the victim, deputies determined that the truck was in the Clermont area.
A short time later, they said they spotted the suspect pumping gas in the area of Castlehill Road and Hartle Road.
When the suspect saw deputies, he drove off in the stolen truck, according to LCSO.
Deputies said as they attempted to stop him, he rammed two patrol cars and then struck a third as he was boxed in at a construction site.
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Despite running over the stop sticks they threw, deputies said the suspect continued to drive, eventually reaching the town of Oakland in Orange County.
When the stolen truck finally became disabled, the suspect tried to carjack a citizen but failed, according to investigators.
They said he continued to run and then approached another motorist, carjacked that person, and drove off in the stolen Ford Bronco Sport.
LCSO said he traveled back into Lake County, and when he reached the Groveland area, he crashed into a school bus.
At that point, Groveland police detained the suspect.
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Sheriff’s investigators later identified him as 24-year-old Joseph Crawford.
At last report, he was being treated at a hospital but is expected to recover, investigators said.
Officials said two adults and a child on the school bus at the time of the crash were uninjured.
Crawford is facing several charges, including aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, fleeing and eluding, and grand theft.
More charges are expected, the sheriff’s office said.
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