BELLE CHASSE - An inmate has been arrested after authorities say he escaped from a Belle Chasse courthouse, stole a "race car," then crashed the vehicle.

According to WWL-TV, around 4:45 p.m. Tuesday the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff's Office got a call about a "race car" speeding near Main Street and F. Edward Hebert Boulevard. Later in the evening, witnesses reported seeing the car crash into a ditch near Woodland Highway.

Authorities found the car at the scene, but the driver had fled into the woods. Deputies later determined that the car was stolen from a nearby warehouse on Main Street.

The driver was identified as 42-year-old Herman Turlich. Authorities say Turlich had escaped from the courthouse earlier in the day. He was in court to face simple burglary charges.

Around 7:15 p.m., Turlich was located in the woods not far from the crash.

Law enforcement said they aren't sure how Turlich escaped his security detail.

"We are going to re-evaluate what happened in the court situation and we are going to make some safeguards to make sure inmates don't get the opportunity to walk out, like what happened today," said Lt. Chaun Domingue