BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — A man slammed his pickup truck through a baggage carousel area and into a car rental counter at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport early Thursday, narrowly missing two employees.
Police spotted 40-year-old Juan Monsivis driving recklessly and tried to pull him over, but weren’t successful. Monsivis smashed through a chain link fence along the edge of the airport before speeding into the terminal wall around 2:50 a.m., according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The truck smashed through the cinder block wall and a luggage conveyor system before hitting the front of the car rental counter. Authorities said they were amazed a woman at the car rental counter nearby wasn’t injured.
Two employees were also behind the car rental counter but were not injured, said FHP Trooper Kenn Watson.
The last plane of the night had landed about 20 minutes earlier so the airport was quiet, said airport CEO Rick Piccolo. He didn’t anticipate the crash would impact Thursday’s flights.
But he estimated the crash caused more than $250,000 damage, saying a pricey luggage conveyor belt would have to be replaced.
The Tampa Bay Times reports Monsivis was hospitalized with serious injuries. The newspaper reports he has a lengthy record and has been charged with multiple DUIs and multiple counts of driving with his license either suspended or canceled.
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