Coronavirus: Man arrested after driving on Florida beach ‘out of boredom,’ police say

John McGarry was arrested and charged with reckless driving, resisting arrest without violence and driving with a suspended license, police said. (Clearwater Police Department/Clearwater Police Department)

Credit: Clearwater Police Department

Credit: Clearwater Police Department

John McGarry was arrested and charged with reckless driving, resisting arrest without violence and driving with a suspended license, police said. (Clearwater Police Department/Clearwater Police Department)

An Idaho man summoned his inner Florida man Saturday when he got bored and started driving on the beach.

Clearwater and other Pinellas County beaches have been closed because of the coronavirus. Even when they’re open, driving on the beaches is prohibited.

That did not deter John McGarry, police said.

McGarry, 25, was bored and drove off the street and onto the sand, leading police on a chase that reached speeds of 35 mph on the empty beach, investigators said.

He finally stopped in a resort parking lot around 2:45 p.m., the Tampa Bay Times reported.

McGarry was arrested and charged with reckless driving, resisting arrest without violence and driving with a suspended license, police said. He is in jail on $650 bail.

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