Deputy: Man Arrested Near Encinitas Sheriff's Station After Attempted Robbery, Hit and Run

A man suspected of making a failed attempt to rob another man outside an Encinitas health club today was arrested a short time later after getting into a traffic accident at a nearby street crossing, authorities reported.

Derrick Lewis, 37, allegedly tried to commit the holdup in a parking lot at the LA Fitness gym in the 200 block of El Camino Real about 1:45 p.m., sheriff's Sgt. Patrick Shannon said.

When the victim began fighting with him, the would-be thief got into his car and took off at high speed, according to Shannon.

At the intersection of Mountain Vista Drive and Wandering Road, the fleeing man's car rammed into an SUV.

"Lewis' vehicle sustained major damage and was rendered inoperable," Shannon said.The suspect then ran off. A short time later, deputies responding to the robbery attempt and traffic accident found Lewis in a patch of shrubbery on a bank  just west of the sheriff's Encinitas Station and arrested him.

Lewis and the woman who had been driving the vehicle involved in the collision were taken to a hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

—City News Service