A Lakeland man wanted on a Polk County felony warrant was arrested Thursday after deputies say he refused a traffic stop on I-4, sped into Lakeland and then ran from his car. The brief vehicle chase ended with deputies capturing him behind a tire store, according to the sheriff's office.
Miguel Montero Acosta, 35, was being sought on an outstanding warrant for battery by strangulation, according to a Friday post from the Polk County Sheriff's Office. The agency said a deputy ran the tag of a white Subaru Legacy around noon Thursday and later attempted a traffic stop after Acosta pulled into a shopping-center parking lot. Acosta allegedly refused to stop and sped away.
Deputies Say They Monitored Acosta Instead Of Pursuing
Deputies said they did not pursue Acosta as he turned onto a dead-end street. After bailing out of the Subaru, he ran on foot and was captured behind a tire store near West Memorial Drive in Lakeland.
Acosta was taken to the Sheriff's Processing Center. In addition to the outstanding warrant, he was charged with fleeing to elude, resisting without violence and driving while his license was suspended or revoked.
New Charges Add Traffic And Resisting Allegations
The Florida Legislature's statute classifies basic fleeing or attempting to elude as a third-degree felony. Florida law generally classifies resisting an officer without violence as a first-degree misdemeanor, while knowingly driving with a suspended or revoked license can be charged as a second-degree misdemeanor.
The warrant's underlying battery-by-strangulation allegation is separate from the new traffic and resisting charges. All of the allegations remain subject to court proceedings, and Acosta is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
