A driver who led deputies on a car chase before trying to run away from law enforcement officers had a gun and drugs inside his vehicle, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday.

Maleeke Antione Myers, a 27-year-old Sumter resident, was charged with possession of a firearm by a felon, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, failure to stop for blue lights and driving under suspension, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

The incident began at about 10:50 p.m. May 24, according to the release. A deputy who was on patrol saw a car cross a double yellow line to pass another vehicle on Boulevard Road, the sheriff’s office said.

The deputy tried to pull over the car for the violation, but the driver — later identified as Myers — not only ignored the activated blue lights on the fully marked patrol car, but sped away in an attempt to escape, according to the release.

The car turned onto Rolling Creek Drive and accelerated before stopping at a residence, the sheriff’s office said.

Both Myers and a passenger exited the car and turned to run away but stopped when they heard loud commands from the deputy to get on the ground, according to the release. The deputy held them at gunpoint until Sumter Police Department officers arrived, and then both men were detained, the sheriff’s office said.

It was discovered that Myers was driving under suspension and had an open bench warrant from Sumter County, according to the release.

Myers told the deputy that he had marijuana and a gun in the car, the sheriff’s office said. The deputy recovered the gun, additional magazines for the gun, a large amount of marijuana, a digital scale, and clear plastic bags consistent with the distribution of marijuana during a search of the car, according to the release.

Myers said that all drugs and weapons found in the vehicle belonged to him, the sheriff’s office said.

The passenger was issued a citation for having alcohol in the vehicle with a broken seal and released, according to the release.

Myers was taken to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center and although bond was set at $105,000, he remains locked up for unresolved hold reasons, the sheriff’s office said.