Florida Man Leads Police on High-Speed Chase in Small Iowa Town

Just when you thought Iowa was safe from "Florida Man," low and behold, we couldn't exit 2024 without an appearance from the infamous rabble-rouser. If you're unfamiliar with "Florida Man," here's the (Urban) Dictionary definition:

A key word used a lot to describe all the weird news stories about random Floridians committing weird and dumb crimes, due to the state law regarding freedom of press about the fact that every police or court case must be public. Most of these weird stories, however, are related to white Florida men, the police and drugs. Due to this, this is why people outside Florida hate Florida - per Urban Dictionary

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"Florida Man" struck a small Iowa town on Sunday, December 29th, specifically in Fairfield, where he led police on a high-speed chase through the normally quiet community.

The man was Matthew Terry Jefferson-Wood, a 24-year-old from Ocala, FL, who was arrested a little after 4am on 200th Street, east of Fairfield. He was charged with eluding, interference with official acts, and reckless driving.

Per Iowa Courts Online, obtained from Southeast Iowa Union, a Jefferson County Sheriff's Deputy attempted to initiate a traffic stop on a 2004 Dodge Dakota with an Iowa license plate. Jefferson-Wood sped away from the scene as the deputy approach, and subsequently led officers on a high-speed pursuit through Jefferson County and Fairfield.

The report adds that the pursuit lasted about 15 minutes where Jefferson-Wood's speeds exceeded the posted limit of 25 MPH. Furthermore, Jefferson-Wood led officers on a foot chase before he was apprehended two blocks away from where he stopped his car.

No additional details were provided, but this just goes to sure, you're never truly safe from Florida Man no matter what part of the country in which you live. Read more on Southeast Iowa Union's website.