Police say man flees traffic stop, hides in creek, catches hypothermia

A 20-year-old man tried to outwit Cape Girardeau police Sunday by hiding up to his neck in a creek following a three-block chase.

Kyle Bond of Murphysboro, Ill., was taken to Southeast Missouri Hospital and treated for hypothermia. He was arrested on six Cape Girardeau warrants for failure to appear and two Cape Girardeau County warrants for passing bad checks and probation violation. His bond is scheduled to be set today.

Police said Bond was pulled over on North Sprigg Street at 3:17 p.m. by patrolman Doug Ritter for speeding.

Bond appeared nervous, his hands shaking as he handed over an insurance card with his name on it, Ritter said.

But then Bond gave his name as Calebe Wayne Raber, hesitated on his birthdate and claimed that he did not know his Social Security number, Ritter said.

When he requested that Bond step out of his truck so that he could verify his information, "he opened the door and slammed the door and nailed it and just took off," Ritter said.

Bond turned onto North End Boulevard and the chase lasted for three blocks until he failed to navigate a turn onto Big Bend Road. His truck went off the road and came to rest 43 feet into a grassy ditch.

Bond then fled the scene, leaving behind a passenger, his 13-year-old sister. As police were arriving on the scene, about 30 residents volunteered to pull Bond's sister from the vehicle. The girl complained about her neck and shoulders as the residents secured her to a gurney and pulled her up the slope, officers said. She was taken to Southeast Missouri Hospital.

In the meantime, officers used a police dog to track Bond, who was reported to have fled toward Sloan's Creek. About 40 minutes later, Bond was found hidden up to his neck in water beneath an embankment that was draped in vines.

jmetelski@semissourian.com

335-6611 extension 127