Police: Man crashed car, stole golf cart

MARTIN COUNTY — A bad day on the golf course can only get worse when someone steals your golf cart before you even finish the front nine.

That’s what the Martin County Sheriff’s Office says happened to two players on the seventh hole of a private community golf course last week when a Palm Beach County man was trying to flee from a car theft that led to a police chase, a crash and then a manhunt.

Jerome Inman, 25, of Greenacres is one of up to three men who went on “an auto theft crime spree in Martin County,” the sheriff ’s office said in a Facebook posting Thursday.

After bailing out of a stolen car that had just crashed, Inman found his way onto the golf course.

The two golfers told investigators that, during their round Saturday, the man later identified as Inman said he had a gun and then stole their golf cart.

Video from the pursuing sheriff ’s office helicopter shows the golf cart — with two golf bags strapped on the back — driving along a fairway, between two bunkers and then onto a golf green. (Driving on a green is not illegal but it sure is bad etiquette.)

Seconds after driving onto the putting surface, Inman is seen stopping the golf cart, walking away and then surrendering to a deputy who comes charging out of the trees.

“He later told deputies that he stole the cart because he thought he could make a faster getaway,” the sheriff ’s office said.

Inman was booked into the Martin County Jail on a charge of grand theft auto and is being held on a bond of $25,000, records show.

A second suspect who ran away from the crashed car was also captured and arrested, the sheriff ’s office said.

The golfers were not hurt in the ordeal.

There was no word on if there were able to complete their 18-hole round.