Date: November 2, 2026
Prepared by: Jake Arthur, Public Information Officer
Email: PIO@flaglersheriff.com
Release #: 2026 – 238
Sheriff Rick Staly and Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested a Palm Coast man Sunday after he fled from a traffic stop initiated by Sheriff Staly, weaving a motorcycle through traffic on State Road 100 and Belle Terre Parkway with a female passenger on the back.
At approximately 12:20 p.m. on Nov. 1, Sheriff Staly was traveling westbound on SR 100 in an unmarked Sheriff’s Office vehicle when he observed a bright blue motorcycle accelerating rapidly and weaving between lanes in a 50-mph zone. Sheriff Staly paced the motorcycle, which had an obscured tag, at 66 mph and activated his emergency lights and siren when the driver did not initially stop.
Jacob Lunsford (Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility mug shot)
Near the intersection of Belle Terre Parkway and SR 100, the motorcycle stopped in the turn lane for northbound Belle Terre Parkway. The driver, later identified as Jacob Lunsford, 23, of Palm Coast, made direct eye contact with Sheriff Staly, then accelerated and fled north on Belle Terre Parkway with his passenger holding on as the motorcycle passed cars by splitting both lanes at a high rate of speed. The motorcycle’s license plate was bent and mounted near the motor frame, rendering it unreadable.
Sheriff Staly did not pursue the motorcycle as the driver was endangering the public and the passenger and to comply with state law and agency policy. Deputies used investigative technology to track the motorcycle and identified Lunsford as the driver. Deputies later stopped Lunsford, who was a passenger in a car, after he left his Palm Coast residence. Sheriff Staly responded to the scene and identified Lunsford as the driver that fled from the traffic stop and arrested him.
Sheriff Rick Staly arrests Jacob Lunsford on Nov. 1, 2026, near the intersection of Rae Dr. and Rymfire Dr. in Palm Coast
“This guy turned a minor traffic infraction into a felony arrest,” said Sheriff Staly. “After stopping, turning his body to look directly at me, he made a really bad decision and decided to flee with a woman on the back of his bike. His bad decisions put her life and everyone else on the road at risk. To those who think they can outrun the Sheriff or our deputies, just know you can’t outrun the radio or our investigative capabilities. I commend the team that helped identify and apprehend him.”
Sheriff Staly arrested Lunsford for fleeing or eluding a law enforcement officer with lights and sirens activated and issued him four traffic citations (speeding, obscured tag, willful and wanton reckless driving, fleeing and eluding) and a written warning for not changing his address on his license. He was transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where he was later released on a $2,650 bond. The motorcycle, a 2004 Yamaha, was seized for forfeiture.
2004 Yamaha that was seized for forfeiture following Jacob Lunsford’s arrest.
