A man accused of fleeing after hitting a vehicle in Hampton on Friday was arrested after crashing behind a business in Shaler and submerging himself in a creek, police said in court paperwork.

Police said James Whorley, 46, of Ohio hit two other vehicles as he tried to elude officers.

Police initially identified Whorley as a “John Doe” because, after his arrest, he was “obviously under the influence of some strong foreign substance,” “flailing around and not making sense,” a criminal complaint states.

Police said Whorley, who was unable to spell his last name or give his date of birth, admitted to smoking marijuana, and he had been carrying a baggie of suspected methamphetamine.

Hampton officers responded to a rear-end hit-and-run collision shortly after 11 a.m. at William Flinn Highway and Mount Royal Boulevard. The suspect vehicle fled south on Mount Royal.

Police learned the vehicle was at a business on Craighead Road, but was gone before officers arrived.

Witnesses told police it had gone over the back hill of the business and then drove into the woods, jumped a short retaining wall and went through back yards.

The car got stuck in a mulch pile in the front yard of a home on Craighead Road, where the resident said the suspect hit her car, the complaint states. He then drove onto Hampton Lane, nearly hitting numerous people working along the road.

A witness gave police a physical description of the driver and a photo of his car.

Police learned the suspect vehicle was at the Hampton-Shaler sewer plant on Duncan Avenue. While police were heading there, it passed them, the complaint states.

The vehicle did not stop for police and sped away south on Route 8, the complaint states. While fleeing, the vehicle hit a car traveling north on Route 8 at Burchfield Road in Shaler but did not stop.

Police found the suspect vehicle crashed behind Joe Ball GMC in Shaler.

Whorley climbed out a window and submerged himself in Pine Creek, where he was arrested.

According to the complaint, Whorley told police that he had smoked weed out of a bowl in a parking lot. He said he drove away after being frightened by people who appeared outside his car and started laughing at him, which police said is what started the erratic driving.

Charges against Whorley include fleeing or attempting to elude police, driving under the influence and traffic-related offenses.

Whorley was arraigned Saturday afternoon and released on a nonmonetary bond. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 15, according to court records.

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