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Officials with the Opp Police Department arrested a suspect accused of stealing a vehicle after a brief chase and search.

According to the OPD, local law enforcement was informed on Monday, July 17, about a female from Opp who had possibly stolen a red 2023 Hyundai Elantra from a Shell gas station in Trussville, Alabama. According to OPD Chief Kevin Chance, at approximately 8:59 p.m., Opp patrol officers spotted the vehicle coming into the city limits, traveling southbound on Hwy. 331.

Chance said the officer turned on the patrol vehicle’s lights to conduct a traffic stop, but instead, the driver sped up and immediately took a right turn onto Potter Road.

“The vehicle went about three hundred yards when the female driver slammed on her brakes and exited the vehicle and ran into the woods,” Chance said.

The Covington County Sheriff’s Department K-9 tracking team was notified and after about an hour and a half located the female just off Potter Road near Spanish Trail Road, north of the lake.

The 22-year-old female is identified as Aaliyah Jade McCormick of Opp. She was taken into custody and charged with first-degree receiving stolen property and attempting to elude law enforcement officers.

The Opp Police Department expressed its appreciation to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the Covington County Sheriff’s Office, and the K-9 tracking team for their assistance with this case.