ISLAMORADA, FLA. (WSVN) - A 23-year-old Virginia man was arrested after a high-speed pursuit through the Upper Florida Keys ended with his SUV crashing into a trailered boat, authorities said.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the pursuit began around 4:40 p.m. on Tuesday, when deputies stopped a southbound Range Rover driven by Christopher Brinkley Smithers, of Great Falls, Virginia, for reckless driving near mile marker 102 in Key Largo.
Deputies said Smithers sped away from the traffic stop, prompting Florida Highway Patrol troopers to take over the chase along U.S. 1.
The pursuit stretched about 14 miles south before ending near Founders Park in Islamorada.
Witness video posted to social media showed the SUV barreling down the median of U.S. 1 as two FHP cruisers closed in. After several attempts to stop the vehicle, troopers were able to force it off the road, where it crashed into a twin-engine center console boat being trailered by a pickup truck.
According to Wes Wilson, a Tampa native who was recording the video, the boat had just been purchased minutes before the crash.
“It’s not often you find yourself in a situation like that,” he said.
He detailed how the pursuit began, prompting him to take out his phone and begin recording.
“I see a Range Rover weaving in and out of traffic, flying at me,” he said. “It was a wild ride. It got very intense there and just kind of mayhem everywhere.”
Authorities said there were no major injuries reported.
“It was crazy. Very thankful that he had a large boat and not a car with a family in it or something. Could have turned out way worse,” said Wilson.
According to the arrest report, when troopers got the driver out of the wrecked car, he “…had a gaze to his eyes and was acting out of character for someone who had fled and resisted.”
As for the breathalyzer test, the arrest report said he blew a 0.00, but Smithers told troopers “…that he had taken 80mg of Adderall.”
Smithers was arrested by FHP troopers and taken to jail on multiple charges. The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office also charged him with fleeing and eluding in connection with the initial stop.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission also responded to the scene. The incident remains under investigation.
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