Courtesy of Star Tribune

A man driving a stolen car that went into a ditch flagged down the wrong person for help.

Dean Gangl, 40, of Richmond, Minn., unwittingly asked an off-duty sheriff's deputy to help him pull the vehicle out of a ditch along Benton County Road 4 west of Foley, Minn., Sheriff Brad Bennett said.

The deputy, who came upon the stranded motorist at 4:45 a.m. Tuesday while he was on his way home, noticed that the vehicle in the ditch matched the description of one reported stolen hours earlier in St. Cloud. The deputy radioed to dispatchers, who confirmed the man was driving a stolen car, Bennett said.

The deputy arrested Gangl and found that he was in possession of a white crystal substance. Gangl tested positive for methamphetamine, Bennett said.

He was taken to the Benton County Jail and charged with being in possession of controlled substance and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.