It was the middle of the day in Mackinac City, Michigan, on Monday, May 19. What would have been a very Great Lakes-ish afternoon—a chilly but pretty view of the freshwater behemoth—was filled with a sudden rush of activity at the state’s interior border. The Emmet County Sheriff’s Office chased a driver right up to the Mackinac Bridge.

Deputies pursued the 27-year-old driver after he fled a speed-related traffic stop in Pellston…some 25 or 30 miles south, depending on which road you take.

Emmet County deputies termed their persuit once the suspect entered Mackinac Bridge

Rather than engage in a high-speed chase across one of the longest suspension bridges in the Western Hemisphere, Lower Peninsula police cancelled its pursuit.

On the other side, though, St. Ignace police knew the getaway car was incoming.

The suspect crashes just after arriving in the U.P., then attempts to carjack a mother and her child

However, the carjacking victim thought to keep driving. 

While she operated her vehicle, the carjacker clung to the exterior. Eventually, he fell off.

The suspect took off on foot. Local authorities spotted him in a hotel parking lot. The suspect “violently” resisted arrest, police say, but they eventually apprehended him.

Authorities charged the 27-year-old driver with several felonies: Fleeing and Eluding, Carjacking, and Resisting and Obstructing an Officer. The St. Ignace Police Department posted these details on their Facebook page after the incident.

“Again I stand by “try that in a small town”! Way to go to our law enforcement for keeping us all safe!!” commented a Top Fan of the page and local Yooper.

Regarding Mackinac Bridge, it really is that long, by the way: 26,372 feet, or just about five miles.