ORLANDO, Fla. – Two police officers were injured early Friday in downtown Orlando while trying to apprehend a man wanted on drug charges.
Officers arrested Antwan James Jordan, 27, of Winter Springs, after he escaped from police during an attempted arrest, the Orlando Police Department said.
Police said two officers on patrol bikes noticed the smell of marijuana coming from a parked car on the South Orange Avenue. Jordan and another man, identified as Dwyaine Anthony Plummer, were sitting on the trunk of a car, police said.
The officers initiated a drug investigation and detained the men for questioning, authorities said.
Police said when the officer started to pull a clear plastic bag out of Jordan’s pocket, Jordan bolted for the driver’s side door of the car.
Officers wrestled Jordan to the ground and used pepper spray to try to detain him, according to police. Jordan managed to get into the car and sped away with an officer still partially in the vehicle, causing the officer to be thrown a few feet away, officials said.
The officer suffered abrasions to his knees and bruising to his forearm and elbow, police said.
The other officer suffered minor lacerations to his forearm, as well as bruising and swelling to his knee, according to police.
While the confrontation occurred, Plummer fled the scene, Orlando police said.
The Police Department said Jordan drove down South Orange Avenue, just south of South Lucerne Circle, hitting a limo golf cart taxi. The cart driver was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Police said Jordan crashed the car into a stop sign at South Orange Avenue West Sturtevant Street and ran away. Officers said Jordan was suffering the effects of the pepper spray and was caught without further incident.
Police said officers found a large amount of cash on Jordan and a .40-caliber handgun, a small digital scale and 9 grams of cocaine in the car.
Jordan was arrested and booked into the Orange County Jail. He faces charges of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with a motor vehicle, aggravated fleeing with injury, leaving the scene of a crash with injuries, possession of cocaine with intent to sell with a firearm, possession of a firearm by convicted felon, violation of probation and resisting officer without violence.
Jordan is a four-time felon who had two outstanding arrest warrants and is also on probation for several prior charges.