UPDATE: High-speed chase in Florida lands suspected Putnam County bank robber in jail

The man suspected of robbing nine central Indiana banks was in a Florida jail Monday night after he was arrested last week in Live Oak, Fla. when the stolen tour bus he was driving caught fire following a 50-mile high-speed chase through two states and three counties.

John Oliver Study, 42, faces charges in Florida and Georgia of fleeing and attempting to elude police and aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, as well as four armed robbery charges in Boone County. He is wanted on two felony receiving stolen property warrants in Putnam County and is the prime suspect in the 2006 robbery of the Indianapolis Road First National Bank of Cloverdale, police said.

Boone County Sheriff Ken Campbell told the BannerGraphic he filed the paperwork Monday to bring Study back to Indiana, though he is unsure how long the process will take and whether Study must first face the charges levied against him in Florida and Georgia.

On the afternoon of Nov. 21, police in Lowndes County, Ga., began pursuing Study after he allegedly stole $300 in gas to fill up a 2008 Fleetwood Providence motor home he is believed to have stolen from a dealership in Pontiac, Ill., said Suwannee County, Fla. Sheriff Tony Cameron.

Study refused to pull over and police pursued him as he accelerated to speeds of 85 to 90 mph and crossed the state line into Madison County, Fla., said Madison County Sheriff's Department Chief Deputy Leonard Harris.

Near the city of Madison, Fla., Study forced a Madison County Sheriff's Deputy off the road near the city of Madison. The officer was not injured.

As he approached Live Oak, Suwannee County Sheriff's Deputies threw stop sticks across the road and deflated Study's tires, Cameron said.

Sparks from Study driving on the rims caught the motor home on fire and only when the vehicle was engulfed in flames did he stop driving, Cameron said.

In all, the chase lasted about half an hour, the Florida sheriff estimated.

Back here in Greencastle, it was September 2006 when a man (thought now to be Study) walked into the Indianapolis Road bank branch, showed a handgun and fled on foot, said Greencastle Police Det. Randy Seipel. The robber was later seen driving a red Jeep.

Working with information from the Putnam County Sheriff's Department, Seipel matched many of Study's known patterns with some of those seen in the Greencastle robbery.

Earlier this month, officers in Madison County chased Study through three counties before they called off the pursuit.

In all, it is believed that Study has stolen upwards of $250,000 from his bank robberies, Seipel said.