A man who was the subject of a Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office search operation has been arrested in Tarboro.

On June 15, Linwood Michael McRoy Jr., 35, of Old New Bern Road, Chocowinity, was arrested by Tarboro police after officers received a tip alerting them to McRoy’s location, said a press release from the sheriff’s office. On May 22, McRoy had eluded sheriff’s deputies when he fled into a wooded area near his home — the deputies were attempting to arrest McRoy for theft, said Maj. Kenneth Watson, spokesman for the sheriff’s office.

When McRoy fled the scene, deputies sent out an alert. The sheriff’s office enlisted all available manpower to search, including investigators, administrative staff and Sheriff Alan Jordan.

“There were 10 of them out there searching the woods, circling the area in cars, on foot,” Watson said.

The arrest warrants came from an April 12 call to the sheriff’s office, in which two rifles and a debit card were reported stolen from one of McRoy’s family members. Investigators found that the debit card was used at Walmart three times: at 1:04 a.m. to purchase a home theater system; at 3:18 a.m. to purchase a flat-screen TV; and again at 3:21 a.m., to purchase a drink and cigarettes, Watson said.

The three purchases led to three counts of obtaining property by false pretense, as well as identity theft and financial card theft, both felonies.

McRoy was not charged with resisting arrest for his May 22 disappearance, Watson said, though those charges may come as the investigation continues.

“You have to be able to show the person knew that they should stop,” Watson explained. “Running is not against the law. Running from law enforcement when they have told you to stop is.”

McRoy was held at the Edgecombe County Jail under a $17,500 bond.