MADISON, Ind. (AP) — Southern Indiana police say a man suspected of stealing a woman’s purse at an Ohio River campground jumped into the river and swam away to avoid arrest.

Madison police responding to the woman’s 911 call found 50-year-old Charles T. Milano in the water about 20 feet from the riverbanks early Thursday.

The Madison Courier reports Milano swam about 100 feet into the river when officers used a boat to try to reach him.

After several attempts to take the exhausted Madison man into custody failed, the officers backed off and Milano held onto the boat until it reached land.

Milano then fled on foot, but he was arrested Thursday night at a Madison residence. He’s being held on charges of resisting law enforcement and interference with reporting a crime.