Zachary Kingsbury was seen swimming away in drone footage.
A suspect found himself in hot water as he allegedly tried to elude officers by running into the sea in North Carolina following a traffic stop.
Cops in Surf City say they had pulled over 20-year-old Zachary Kingsbury Thursday afternoon when an officer allegedly spotted something suspicious in the car.
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"Upon interviewing Kingsbury, he fled the scene on foot onto the beach, proceeding into the ocean in an attempt to flee pursuing officers," cops said in a statement.
Police deployed a drone, which they say followed Kingsbury an impressive 4,000 feet off shore. Unfortunately for the suspect, a five-foot shark also appeared to be following him.
While it is unclear whether the suspect knew the shark was no more than 60 feet away, the predator can clearly be seen swimming parallel to the swimmer identified as Kingsbury in the lower right-hand corner of the video.
With Kingsbury nearly a mile out to sea, cops say their attempted arrest became a rescue operation.
The EMS and Fire Marine unit were dispatched, along with U.S. Coast Guard Marine and Air division. The Surf City Fire Department and North Topsail Beach Police Department also aided in the operation.
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Cops say their extensive search ended at about 7:45 p.m. when Kingsbury was arrested and transported to the Pender County Jail for processing.
Kingsbury has been charged with resisting, operating a car without a license, reckless driving, possession of paraphernalia, meth possession and possession of marijuana.
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