WESTON, FLA. (WSVN) - - Authorities responded to reports of a hit-and-run crash after a reckless driver collided with a Florida Highway Patrol trooper vehicle, leading to a multi-agency manhunt.
The incident unfolded around 7 a.m. Tuesday, on the northbound lanes of Interstate 75 approaching Indian Trace in Weston.
The FHP trooper’s vehicle, visibly damaged on the back and front left side, had crashed into the median barrier. A black SUV, also heavily damaged, was found further up the road. A photo from FHP revealed the extent of damage to the Porsche involved, with a significant portion of the car missing.
The hit-and-run driver, identified as 49-year-old Ricardo Jimenez, abandoned the scene on foot, which led to a massive manhunt involving Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies and FHP troopers.
Aerial footage captured by 7Skyforce showed the intensity of the search, with deputies combing through bushes, guns drawn, and K-9 units deployed.
The manhunt concluded just before 9 a.m., as Jimenez was apprehended and cuffed by deputies.
Paramedics attended to him on-site, placing him on a stretcher for medical evaluation before transporting him to the hospital. Jimenez, wearing a grey T-shirt with an American flag on the front and U.S.A. on the back, now faces charges related to the hit-and-run crash.
The injured FHP trooper, whose injuries are reported as non-life-threatening, is recovering.
Jimenez was transferred to the Broward County Jail after he was cleared from the hospital. He has since been charged with failure to stop at an accident with non-serious injuries, two counts of leaving the scene of crash with property damage, leaving the scene of accident without leaving ID and resisting arrest without violence.
His was also given a $3,450 bond.
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