PHELPS, Ky. — A little sleight of hand was not enough to keep a Virginia man out of jail.

A Pike County sheriff’s deputy attempted to pull over a car with expired tags Monday evening on Route 194 at Phelps. However, the car sped away, leading deputies on a chase onto Widows Branch Road and finally onto a gravel road, where it got stuck in mud.

At that point, the driver — identified by police as 38-year-old David Justus, of Grundy — reclined his seat, slid into the back of the vehicle, then got out of the car, claiming he was only a passenger.

He told police that a man named Barry or BJ was the driver, but deputies only found a woman in the car. She told police that Justus had been driving.

Justus was arrested and charged with DUI, fleeing police and numerous traffic violations.