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A Mary Esther man driving a suspected stolen car led Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office deputies on a high speed chase before being captured trying to hide in bushes at a home on Hollywood Boulevard.
33-year old Tramon Coward is charged with fleeing and eluding with lights and siren activated, driving with a suspended license (3rd or subsequent offense), resisting an officer, possession of cocaine, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
An OCSO deputy on Highway 98 around 11 p.m. November 15th spotted a car matching the description of one reported stolen and attempted to make contact. A query of the license plate confirmed it as being stolen out of Okaloosa County. The deputy followed the driver while calling for back-up, then activated his lights and siren when the car turned onto Skylark Drive. Coward began accelerating through the neighborhood before getting back on Highway 98 eastbound and hitting speeds over 100 miles per hour. Deputies say there was minimal to no traffic on the roadway.
At the end of the pursuit, Coward jumped out of the car and began cutting through yards and jumping privacy fences. He was found trying to hide in bushes in front of a house on Hollywood Boulevard, and then tased after refusing a deputy’s repeated commands to stop and put his hands behind his back.
A backpack in Coward’s possession contained powder cocaine, crack cocaine, and meth.
Coward was already on probation for a previous charge of resisting without violence.
The investigation is ongoing.
