Flagler Sheriff Rick Staly personally arrested a man accused of extreme speeding on I-95 Friday, per an announcement from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office. It’s not an everyday occurrence for a sheriff themselves to conduct an arrest, but the circumstances of the incident sent Staly himself into action.
Staly and his wife, Debbie, were reportedly driving on I-95 in an unmarked patrol car Friday before 5:00 p.m.. The two were said to be en route to a dinner meeting when a 2016 Dodge Challenger drove by at a high rate of speed.
At the time, Staly was said to be going south, just past the SR-100 exit. The sheriff reportedly began pursuing the Challenger to attempt a traffic stop. At one point Staly’s speedometer reportedly clocked the car at between 115 and 125 miles per hour.
For nearly six miles Staly pursued the Challenger, who was allegedly weaving in and out of traffic in all three lanes. There were points in the pursuit when Staly reportedly observed the Challenger approach within three to four feet of other cars’ rear bumpers.
Upon Staly’s activation of his lights and sirens, the Challenger was said to have pulled over. By this point they were just south of Old Dixie Highway, the next exit south of SR-100 where the pursuit began. The traffic stop occurred just over the border into Volusia County.
The driver was identified as 22-year-old Palm Coast resident Arul Nayak. He was arrested at the scene of the traffic stop without incident. Nayak was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail, charged with operating a vehicle at 100+ miles per hour with threat to person or property. His bond was set at $500.
The FCSO made a note that passing drivers honked their horns at the traffic stop in apparent approval of Nayak being pulled over. Prior to this arrest, Nayak has no criminal history. He was said to have a final pilot’s exam scheduled for Saturday.
“Driving 125 miles per hour and weaving through three lanes of traffic isn’t a mistake, it’s a decision to gamble with everyone else’s life, including the three passengers sitting in his own car,” Staly said. “This wanna-be pilot was flying fast and low, but he wasn’t in an airplane and this wasn’t his final exam.”
