This weekend, the St. Petersburg Police Department led a crackdown on street racing. In Pinellas, police nabbed 69 people and seized 23 cars.
At about 10:45 p.m. on Saturday, police went to a parking lot between two houses at 1101 Roosevelt Blvd. A St. Petersburg police news release said that they knew people were planning to do “doughnuts” in the parking lot and other “dangerous street racing activity” before taking over other big intersections in Pinellas.
More than 50 police cars from the St. Petersburg Police Department, the Pinellas Park Police Department, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Highway Patrol circled the event and shut it down.
At a news announcement on Monday, Sgt. Michael Schade of the St. Petersburg Police Department’s traffic unit said, “This was a chance for us to send a message to the street racing community that we won’t stand for it.” “We’ll keep using our investigative methods to try to find out about these things before they happen and stop them from happening.”
After a motorcyclist going more than 100 mph hit and killed 13-year-old Ethan Martin at a street racing event earlier this year, cops in St. Petersburg promised to do more to stop street racing. Police said that the boy’s father, Johnny Julio Martin, 35, was jailed on a charge of child neglect because he brought his son to the event.
The motorcyclist, 21-year-old Carlos Fernandez, was arrested on felony charges of vehicular homicide, culpable negligence manslaughter, and reckless driving causing serious physical harm, as well as misdemeanor charges of street racing and operating a motorbike without an endorsement.
The Owner of the Motorcycle Was Also Arrested
The owner of the motorcycle, 39-year-old Allan Boreland Jr., was also arrested and charged with death due to carelessness.
Fernandez and Martin have both said they are innocent and are now waiting for their trial. Court records show that the killing charge against Boreland was dropped at the end of last month.
On Saturday, cops went to a parking lot in St. Petersburg where a lot of people had gathered for a street racing event. Many of the people there were not from the area.
The tweet below confirms the news:
More than 50 patrol cars responded to a street takeover at 1101 Roosevelt Blvd. about 10:45 p.m. Saturday night, police said.https://t.co/pcCWhDqcIb
— Tampa Bay Times (@TB_Times) April 24, 2023
After parents brought their 1-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son to the event, police arrested both adults and teens on criminal charges like running away and putting children in danger. People were also arrested for minor crimes like racing on the street, driving with a suspended license, and blocking traffic.
Police said that 74 tickets were also given out by law enforcement.
At Monday’s news conference, St. Petersburg police Assistant Chief Antonio Gilliam said, “We strongly suggest that those of you who have done this or plan to do it in the future find a legal, safer activity.” “Because if you do this, you’ll end up in jail or prison.”
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