By By Adam Prestridge
The lone gunman wanted for Tuesday’s armed robbery of First National Bank &Trust is behind bars in Levy County Florida after bloodhounds tracked him down hiding in a marsh early Thursday morning after he assaulted a police officer.
Canoe’s Chad Floyd Jeter was arrested and charged with attempted murder after he stabbed Inglis Police Department officer Tim Swiggett with a Chinese throwing star once in the neck and four times in the back. Jeter was taken into custody following a three-hour manhunt through the marshes in Yankeetown, Fla.
According to Finnen, Swiggett was conducting an investigation of a suspicious vehicle parked in some bushes on private property at 4:15 a.m. on County Road 40 west near Riverside Drive. When Swiggett approached the vehicle, he found Jeter asleep in the front seat of what was described by officials as an older model blue GMC pickup with no tag. Swiggett woke Jeter, interviewed him and ran his driver’s license.
Jeter then fled into the woods leading local, federal and state agencies including the Levy County Sheriff’s Office, Inglis Police Department, Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, Cross City Correctional K-9 team and the U.S. Coast Guard on a manhunt through the wetlands near Ocala, Fla.
Swiggett was transported to Seven Rivers Regional Medical Center in Crystal River, Fla. for minor injuries and released. According to Inglis Police Department officials, Swiggett was at home on leave recovering Friday.
Surveillance video captured Jeter, armed with a .22-caliber semi-automatic rifle, demanding money from a teller at First National Bank &Trust and making a getaway with an undisclosed amount of cash in an older model, white GMC pick-up truck with a camper shell.
Wednesday morning, officials found Jeter’s camper shell burnt in a wooded area off Pine Barren Road in Walnut Hill, Fla. His capture was made more than 400 miles from the scene of the fire.
Atmore law enforcement agents were pleased to hear word that Jeter had been arrested Thursday morning.
Carlee added that Jeter’s identification would not have been known as quick as it was Tuesday if it were not for a witness coming forward on his own with information.
First National Bank &Trust president Shep Marsh noted bank security and law enforcement’s quick action in a statement released Wednesday morning.
Finnen said a search warrant of the truck Jeter was driving was performed Friday, adding that results of that search have not been processed.
For now, Jeter will stay locked up in Levy County until a judge hears the evidence in the case and Jeter’s plea, according to Finnen. From there, it will be determined which charge is the higher crime, determining when Jeter will be extradited back to Alabama by either local or federal officials.