Car fleeing police slams into bar in Tampa, killing 4 people and injuring 11 | Tampa
In Florida’s historic Tampa area, famous for its nightlife and tourists, a speeding car fleeing police crashed into a crowded bar early Saturday, killing four people and injuring 11 others.
A Tampa Police Department air patrol unit spotted the car driving recklessly on the highway around 12:40 a.m. after police said the silver sedan was seen street racing in another neighborhood, according to a statement from the police department.
A Florida highway patrol officer caught up with the vehicle and attempted to perform a maneuver that involved striking the rear fender of a fleeing vehicle and turning the vehicle; this maneuver was called the pit or precision immobilization technique, but was unsuccessful.
Tampa police said highway patrol officers “lost contact” as the vehicle sped toward the historic Ybor City area near downtown. Police said the driver lost control of the vehicle and hit more than a dozen people outside the bar.
Three victims died at the scene and the fourth victim died at the hospital. As of Saturday morning, a fifth victim was in critical condition and eight more victims were being treated at local hospitals but were in stable condition, police said. The other two victims suffered minor injuries and refused treatment at the scene. All 15 victims are adults.
“What happened this morning was a senseless tragedy, and our thoughts go out to the victims’ loved ones and those affected,” Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw said in a statement.
Officers identified the suspect as 22-year-old Silas Sampson, who was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail on Saturday.
Court documents showed Sampson was charged with four counts of vehicular homicide and four counts of aggravated fleeing or eluding with serious bodily injury or death. All are first degree crimes. No attorney was listed for Sampson.
“Our entire city feels this loss,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, who also served as Tampa’s first female police chief, said in a post on social media.
“My thoughts are with everyone affected. The investigation into this crash is ongoing and we are working to get answers,” he wrote.
In recent years, some states and local agencies have pushed to restrict the use of high-speed car pursuits to protect both civilians and officers. 2023 after the increase in deaths to work The project, funded by the US justice department, called for the rare use of police chases, noting that the danger to suspects, officers and bystanders often outweighs the urgent need to detain someone.
Still, Florida has doubled down on its tactics, with the state’s highway patrol changing its policies to loosen restrictions on the use of car chases and pit maneuvers. The report, supported by the Department of Justice, described these tactics as “high risk” and “controversial.”
