BATON ROUGE - Sheriff’s deputies arrested a Florida man after he poured gasoline on a vehicle in a motel parking lot and caused a public disturbance as he tried to evade police by hiding at a nearby fast food restaurant.

Deputies said they were dispatched to a motel located in the 10400 block of Rieger Road in Baton Rouge in reference to a disturbance. At the scene, they found 30-year-old Michael Hepworth had reportedly poured gasoline over his own vehicle and was “acting crazy” in the motel parking lot.

The victim told deputies that Hepworth poured gasoline onto the front of his truck and climbed on top of it, jumping up and down causing noticeable dents and damage. Deputies found he had stolen the gas from a nearby area.

As deputies arrived, Hepworth fled the scene on foot. They pursued him to a nearby fast food restaurant where Hepworth reportedly caused a large public disturbance as he attempted to escape arrest by hiding in the area. Deputies said they never lost sight of the man and were able to subdue him with the use of an office-issued Tazer.

Hepworth was booked into the parish prison on charges of aggravated arson, criminal damage to property, theft and resisting an officer.