Officer Uses Golf Cart to Nab Suspect

Officer Uses Golf Cart to Nab Suspect

WINONA, Minn. (AP) - From behind the wheel of golf cart, a policeman chased down a man who ran from a traffic stop Saturday morning.

The 28-year-old man faces possible charges of trespassing, driving after suspension, fleeing on foot and driving a car with a cracked windshield.

Sgt. Chris Nelson was acquainted with the man and knew that he didn't have a valid driver's license. So when Nelson saw him driving about 11 a.m., the officer pulled the car over.

By then, a woman was in the driver's seat and the suspect bailed out and started running, police said. Nelson saw the man in a parking lot south of the Westfield Golf Course and told him to stop. The man ran toward the golf course and Nelson ran after him.

At hole No. 5, a golfer loaned Nelson his cart and he chased the man toward the first green. The suspect ran off the course into residential yards.

Two other officers joined in and tackled the suspect, who later complained of shortness of breath. Police took him to the hospital.

The man posted $2,500 bail Tuesday morning, according to the jail. He was released last week on other charges and walked away from an inmate work crew in Whitewater State Park earlier in May.