Woman is thrown from SUV and a man is arrested after chase ends in crash, SC cops say

A woman was critically injured Friday night and a man was arrested after a vehicle chase in South Carolina ended in a crash, according to the Sumter Police Department .

At about 8:30 p.m., an officer tried to pull over an SUV that had been identified in an ongoing metal theft investigation, police said in a news release. The vehicle was seen on North Guignard Drive in Sumter , not far from the USC-Sumter campus.

The driver, later identified as 47-year-old Sumter resident Michael Charles Rose, ignored the traffic stop and sped away, prompting a pursuit to begin, police said.

The chase ended when Rose lost control of the SUV, which crashed and rolled over at the intersection of Alice Drive and Wesmark Boulevard , according to the release.

A passenger, a 56-year-old woman formerly of Florida, was thrown from the vehicle as it crashed, police said. She was found severely injured and was airlifted to a hospital in Columbia, where she was in critical condition, according to the release. Further information about her condition was not available.

Rose escaped from the crash and ran away, police said. After what police called an extensive search that involved officers and Sumter County sheriff’s deputies , Rose was found in a wooded area near Meadow Circle , according to the release. That’s about half a mile from the crash scene.

After being treated for what police called minor injuries, Rose was arrested. He was taken to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center, where police charged him with driving under suspension and failure to stop for blue lights involving in an accident with great bodily injury, according to the release.

Rose also faces a felony driving under the influence charge from the South Carolina Highway Patrol , according to police. Blood-alcohol content analysis results are pending, according to the release.

No other injuries were reported.

The crash continues to be investigated by the Highway Patrol.