By By Arthur McLean
An Atmore man led police on a high-speed chase from Evergreen and a search through the woods before his capture and arrest Wednesday night.
Collis McCaster, 31, of Atmore, was arrested on charges of robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
McCaster is accused of robbing the Country Store on Highway 84 in Evergreen at gunpoint.
Evergreen police received a 911 call about a man who robbed the store just after 5 p.m. Wednesday, according to Det. Sean Klaetsch of the Evergreen Police Department. A store employee followed the man from the store as police issued a look out on state radio.
State Trooper Jimmy Dean took up the chase heading south from Evergreen on I-65. At the 66-mile marker, just south of the Flomaton exit, McCaster drove his car off the Interstate, through the median, across the northbound lanes and crashed into an embankment.
He then jumped out of his car with a weapon and ran into the woods, according to Klaetsch.
A manhunt lasting about an hour ensued with the tracking dog team from Fountain Correctional and a state police helicopter aiding the search. McCants was apprehended near Big Escambia Creek about 7:25 p.m.
He was booked into the Conecuh County Jail. Bond was set at $200,000.
Members of the Conecuh County Sheriff's Department, Escambia County Sheriff's Department, Evergreen Police Department, Atmore Police Department, ABI and Highway Patrol took part in the search and arrest.