Two men are in custody following a police chase that ended with a stolen vehicle submerged in Dog River.
According to the Mobile Police Department, officers attempted to stop a vehicle reported stolen at about 3:16 p.m. Tuesday near Navco Road and McVay Drive. The driver refused to stop, leading officers on a pursuit that ended at Dog River Court when the vehicle entered the water in the 2200 block of Dog River Drive North. The car was reportedly fully submerged, and both occupants were retrieved from the water and taken into custody.
Police arrested Bruce Smith Jr., 19, on charges of first-degree receiving stolen property and attempting to elude. He was taken to Mobile County Metro Jail. A juvenile male was also arrested and transported to the Strickland Youth Center.
The vehicle had been reported stolen the day before, Monday, Aug. 3, from the 6700 block of Zeigler Boulevard.
Court records show Smith pleaded guilty May 18 to discharging a firearm into an occupied building or vehicle. A judge imposed a sentence of nearly 10 years, split to require one year, five months and one day in confinement, followed by three years of probation. Smith received jail credit equal to the confinement portion of the sentence and was released May 19 — less than three months before Tuesday’s arrest.
The new charges are allegations, and Smith is presumed innocent unless convicted.