Man jumps into St. Lawrence River to avoid police

(Newswatch Group/Bill Kingston, File)

MORRISBURG – It’s not every day you hear about someone trying to swim away from police.

But that’s exactly what happened early Sunday morning after SD&G O.P.P. got a call about a disturbance at a home on Lakeshore Drive, west of Morrisburg.

Police say the suspect was visibly drunk at the gathering and was belligerent to others and the officers who arrived at the scene around 12:30 a.m.

But when police went to put the cuffs on, the 28-year-old jumped into the St. Lawrence River and tried to swim away.

O.P.P. Const. Joel Doiron told Cornwall Newswatch the man swam quite a distance out into the river, where an O.P.P. boat was able to fish him out of the water.

The 28-year-old from Chatham, Ont is charged with causing a disturbance (by yelling and swearing) and being intoxicated in a public place.

He will appear in a Morrisburg court in August.