MARION COUNTY, FL (352today.com) – Marion County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a man who they say stole a Kubota and then took off from deputies.
Video from Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods’ Wanted by Woods Wednesday segment on Facebook shows the alleged thief taking off on a Kubota.
The dashcam footage from a responding deputy shows a second person in the front seat of the Kubota. The deputy is heard reporting that the second person was a child.
As deputies arrived at the scene, the driver took an evasive three-point turn and hightailed it down a dirt path.
Deputies chased the Kubota down the path before the driver turned off the road and into a remote neighborhood.
The video shows deputies cornering the driver in a nearby lake where he tried to get away by backing up. He then flipped the Kubota onto its side while attempting to back up and took off on foot.
Deputies say the driver was able to get away from them following the accident.
According to MCSO, the driver left the child behind in the tipped-over Kubota. While the deputy responded to the child, the driver took off on foot.
MCSO identified the driver as Benjamin Bariteau from Umatilla.
Arrest records indicate that Bariteau has been arrested six previous times by MCSO. His most recent arrest included fifteen felony charges for Fraud and Felony Grand Theft, among other misdemeanor charges.
MCSO had an arrest warrant for Bariteau on charges of Grand Theft of a Motor Vehicle and Burglary of an Unoccupied Conveyance.
MCSO says they now have “probable cause” to charge him with Fleeing to Elude, Child Abuse, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
“Benjamin went from being a thief to putting a child in danger just to avoid getting arrested. You really can’t get more selfish than that,” said Sheriff Woods in the Facebook post. “Citizens, we need your help getting this criminal off our streets.”
MCSO says if you have any information on Bariteau’s whereabouts to contact Crime Stoppers of Marion County at 352-368-STOP.