COLUMBUS – It was no ordinary accident that tied up morning traffic on the East Side Thursday morning. A man who told police his name was “God,” had to be fished out of a pond after causing an accident on the East Outerbelt.
CAR ACCIDENT THIS AM TURNS INTO SO MUCH MORE: Thank you to the special duty officers at @AbbottGlobal on Steltzer Rd., @EastonTownCtr & @GahannaPD. The suspect who caused car accidents, highway speeding & jumped into a pond is hospitalized. Luckily no one else seriously injured. pic.twitter.com/IuyVtSAhhZ
— Columbus Division of Police (@ColumbusPolice) March 7, 2019
The bizarre incident began at 7:59 a.m. when Columbus police dispatcher received reports of a man weaving in and out of traffic in the southbound lanes of I-270 south of Easton Way, according to a tweet on the division’s Twitter feed.
The man’s vehicle crashed into several cars north of the McCutcheon Road overpass (above) and the driver got out and started running down the highway, unsuccessfully trying to hijack a car and jumping into other vehicles before he ran away and officers chased him into the parking lot at the offices of the Ross Products Division of Abbott Labs, 3300 Steltzer Road, where he jumped into a pond.
He remained in the water for approximately 18 minutes while Columbus Division of Fire rescued him and he was taken to OSU Wexner Medical Center to be treated for hypothermia.
Other than an officer who was treated at the scene after falling in the pond while trying to put handcuffs on the man, there were no injuries during the incident.
The was no word from police early Friday about what charges, if any, would be filed against “God.”