MARION COUNTY, OR (KPTV) -
A Mill City man is accused of stealing a car and filling up for free, then leading deputies on a half-hour chase.
Investigators said Norman Hice stole his ex-girlfriend's car Sunday while they were camping at Detroit Lake.
He's then accused of filling up the car with $60 of gas and leaving without paying. A deputy tried to stop the car on Highway 22, but police said that's when Hice hit the gas and passed several cars.
Initially, he took off at 80 mph and nearly struck several cars in the on-coming lane while passing traffic. Police stopped the chase at this point, because of the risk it posed to other drivers.
But just minutes later, Hice was spotted driving normally in heavy traffic. Once police got behind him he seemed to take notice and turned around, heading back towards Detroit Lake. With police in tow, lights and sirens fully activated, he led what's being described as a 30-minute, slow-speed chase.
The incident came to an anti-climatic end however. Police said Hice simply pulled over in a gravel lot near the dam at Detroit Lake. He stuck his arms out the window, indicating surrender, and he was taken into custody.
Hice was booked into Marion County Jail on $80,000 bail and faces several charges related to what police said was an attempt at eluding authorities.
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