The Citrus County Sheriff's Office has traditionally said that, "there is no such thing as a routine traffic stop."

And that was the case on Saturday when a deputy stopped a white Ford Ranger pickup truck on Lecanto Highway in Beverly Hills when it failed to stop at a red light at the intersection of Truman Boulevard.

But there is more to the tale. The pickup driver, William Arthur Hayes Jr., 31, was not only found in possession of a small bag of marijuana, but a check of his Mississippi driver's license also showed he was a fugitive from justice from Massachusetts, where he was being sought on charges of aggravated battery with a firearm. Seeing that information, the deputy who had stopped Hayes' truck called for backup.

When that backup arrived, Hayes got out of his truck without being told to, threw a plastic baggie with what was later determined to be marijuana in it to the ground and then ran. K-9 Jerry Lee caught up with Hayes about 75 yards away from the truck, but the K-9 and Hayes struggled. When the deputies caught up to Hayes and the K-9, a deputy deployed a taser and the still-struggling Hayes fell to the ground, where he was then held and handcuffed.

Hayes, who has been classified as an armed career criminal by law enforcement authorities, was taken to the Citrus County jail, where he was charged with possession of marijuana and resisting an officer without violence. Bond was set at $1,000.

But Hayes, whose address is listed as 105 Carter St., Bellzoni, Miss., also faces charges in Massachusetts. The CCSO Career Criminal unit worked closely with members of Barnstable, Mass., Police Department’s counterpart unit in Hyannis, plus the SAO, to lodge fugitive charges on Hayes on an active Barnstable County, Mass., warrant.

Once Hayes faces his local charges here, it’s expected he’ll be extradited to Massachusetts.

SO YOU KNOW: OTHER RELATED STORIES ...

• Cape shooting suspect sought by (Massachusetts) police
• Hyannis (Massachusetts) shooting suspect sought by police