PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. – Three people are dead after a 22-year-old Hialeah man in a stolen Ford Mustang rammed a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle and a Florida Highway Patrol cruiser before crashing head-on into an Uber on the Skyway Bridge in an attempt to evade capture Wednesday night.
The driver of the Mustang, identified as Leosvany Arias Roman, was among the four people hospitalized after the crash. He will be charged with felony murder, vehicular homicide, aggravated fleeing and eluding involving death, driving while license suspended involving death and battery on a law enforcement officer, troopers said.
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The crash occurred around 10:46 p.m. near milepost 13. Leading up to the wreck, Roman had allegedly rammed an HCSO vehicle with the Mustang during an attempted stop before driving away southbound on Interstate 275 at a high speed. The sheriff’s office requested FHP’s assistance, keeping an eye on the Mustang with an aerial unit as it neared the bridge.
When the Mustang reached the Skyway Bridge, it collided with the vehicle of a trooper who attempted to stop the stolen car, according to FHP. The Mustang then continued southbound to the top of the bridge before turning around and ramming the same FHP vehicle, troopers said.
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Then, traveling northbound in the southbound lanes of I-275, the Mustang struck a Dodge Caravan head-on at high speed near the northern rest area, according to the FHP.
The driver of the Caravan — identified as a 33-year-old man from Bradenton — was operating as an Uber driver for three passengers, all of Columbiana, Ohio. The passengers were described as a 51-year-old woman, a 52-year-old man and a 24-year-old man. The 33-year-old man and 52-year-old man were killed in the crash, troopers said, while the 51-year-old woman and 24-year-old man were hospitalized for treatment of serious injuries.
In an update on Saturday, troopers said that the 51-year-old woman had died overnight from her injuries.
The trooper who Ramon rammed — described as 27-year-old man and a two-year veteran of FHP — suffered minor injuries and was also hospitalized.
Roman suffered serious injuries and was hospitalized, according to FHP. The incident caused the closure of I-275 southbound in the area until 6:40 a.m. Thursday, troopers said.
NOTE: This map depicts the general area of this crash and not necessarily its exact location.
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