Man arrested after naked swim in aquarium at sporting goods store

A man is facing charges after he drove a vehicle into a pole outside a sporting goods store, stripped naked and jumped into an aquarium.

A man was arrested and has been released on bail after he dived naked into the aquarium at sporting goods store Bass Pro Shop in Alabama, US.

Police Chief Paul Irwin said the incident happened shortly before the store closed.

The 42-year-old man reportedly began acting erratically and intentionally drove a vehicle into a pole in the store parking lot, the chief said. The man’s family told police he suffers from mental illness.

After the crash, police said the suspect exited the vehicle, stripped his clothes off and ran into the shop. Once inside, the man jumped into the aquarium.

Man arrested after naked dive into aquarium at a store in Alabama. Picture: Supplied

Irwin said officers were dispatched to the store to remove the man from the fish tank. The suspect was belligerent and refused to co-operate with officers’ instructions to get out of the water.

Two Leeds officers were seen attempting to talk to the man in a video recorded by a bystander and reported by AL.com.

As the officers walked up the store stairs and approached the aquarium, the man exited the water, yelled something to the officers and then dived back into the water, the report said.

“He was very erratic and was saying a lot of nasty things to the officers,” Irwin told Fox News Digital.

The man continued to shout at the officers before he climbed over the side of the aquarium and fell to the concrete floor below and was apparently knocked out, AL.com reported.

Officers placed the man in handcuffs, and then he woke and attempted to struggle. Iriwn said he assaulted one of the officers with a kick.

The man was then covered by a blanket and escorted out of the store, according to AL.com.

George Owens, 42, was arrested on Thursday night after he allegedly got naked and dived into a sporting goods store aquarium. Picture: St. Clair County Sheriff's Office

Owens faces an array of charges for disorderly conduct and public lewdness for his alleged behaviour at a sporting goods store in Alabama, US. Picture: Google Maps/Google Street View

Irwin said that as his officers attempted to place the suspect into a patrol car, the man kicked the vehicle door strongly and damaged the door frame.

The suspect was taken to a hospital for treatment and a mental health evaluation before he was booked into the County Jail.

Jail Records show that George Owens, 42, of Sterrett, Alabama, was booked on Thursday at 9:39pm.

Irwin said that Owens will face an array of charges including public lewdness, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, second-degree assault, two counts of criminal mischief for hitting the pole and damaging the patrol car and two counts of reckless endangerment for how he drove the vehicle.

He was released on bail on Friday at 4:30pm.

This article originally appeared on Fox News and was reproduced with permission.