St. Helena Island man leads chase through tomato field before arrest on gun charges

A 27-year-old St. Helena Island man faces multiple charges after a foot chase through a tomato field on Storyteller Road late Sunday afternoon.

Akeem Chaplin is charged with possession of a sawed-off firearm, possession of a firearm while under the influence, fleeing to evade arrest and public disorderly conduct, according to online Beaufort County Detention Center records. He was jailed shortly before 10 p.m. Sunday and remained incarcerated Monday afternoon with bond set at $25,345, according to the online records.

Chaplin was allegedly firing a sawed-off shotgun with “an obliterated serial number” behind Storyteller Road residences and “causing a commotion” around 5:30 p.m., according to a Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office report. Deputies found him walking through a tomato field on the same road.

He attempted to run when he was spotted and was arrested after a chase through the field, according to the report.

The suspect “appeared intoxicated and was using profanities” and refused to submit to a test to confirm his intoxication once at the detention center, according to the report.

This story was originally published March 27, 2017 at 4:05 PM with the headline "St. Helena Island man leads chase through tomato field before arrest on gun charges."