Florida teens crash stolen Maserati speeding away from deputies, sheriff's office says
The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office released new helicopter video showing the moments leading up to a deadly crash involving three teens driving a stolen Maserati in St. Petersburg, Florida. Credit: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
A Florida sheriff’s office has released new helicopter video showing the moments leading up to a deadly crash involving three teens driving a stolen Maserati.
The three teens, later identified as 15-year-old Keondrick Lang, 16-year-old Malachi Daniels and 15-year-old Mario Bonilla, stole the unlocked Maserati just before 3:30 a.m. from a driveway in St. Petersburg, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said. The owner had also left the keys inside the car.
A sheriff’s helicopter was in the area for an unrelated vehicle burglary and spotted the three teens walking down a road and approaching the luxury car.
Aerial video shows the teens opening the doors to the car and driving away. The driver, later identified as Lang, is seen pulling out of the driveway and driving across the grass onto the street.
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Investigators said one teen used a glove and another used his shirt to open the car's doors, so they did not leave fingerprints. (Pinellas County Sheriff's Office)
Authorities in the chopper can be heard noting that the vehicle is driving "normal" down 62nd Avenue as patrol vehicles approach the vehicle from behind.
Patrol deputies attempted to stop the stolen car, but the teens refused to stop and accelerated to over 100 mph, the sheriff's office said. Deputies did not chase after the stolen vehicle in accordance with its non-pursuit policy.
Deputies attempted to stop the stolen Maserati, but once the teens began accelerating, reaching speeds over 100 mph, the deputies let them go in accordance with its non-pursuit policy. (Pinellas County Sheriff's Office)
The teens continued speeding a short distance until the driver lost control of the Maserati and hit a curb. The car launched into the air and flipped over before landing in the parking lot of a business.
The chopper pilot can be heard calling in the crash, noting that none of the three teens had gotten out of the crashed car.
Pictures taken by FOX13 Tampa show the mangled Maserati upside down in the parking lot.
Bonilla, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, the sheriff’s office said. Lang and Daniels were rushed to a hospital with critical injuries.
Lang was initially not expected to survive, but he has undergone multiple surgeries and remains critical, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri told reporters Tuesday. Daniels’ injuries were not considered life-threatening.
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Deputies also found a .25 caliber handgun inside the crashed vehicle, which Gualtieri said belonged to the teens and not the car’s owner. Authorities are testing the gun to see if it had been used in other crimes.
While no charges have been filed, Lang could face charges up to third-degree criminal murder, Gualtieri said.
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