The Florida Highway Patrol said troopers located a driver suspected of racing with another person in Tampa at the time of a deadly crash. FHP said charges are pending.
Troopers said two vehicles were racing at high speeds southbound in the center lane of U.S. 41 Tuesday afternoon.
Just after 1:15 p.m., a pickup truck that was going eastbound on South 16th Avenue tried to turn left into the path of the racers and was hit by one of the vehicles, according to a press release.
FHP said the impact had enough force to split the pickup in half, killing the driver, a 26-year-old man from Tampa.
Troopers said the bed of the pickup came to a final rest in the northbound lanes, and the cab of the truck ended up in the southbound lanes.
After the initial crash, FHP said the vehicle that crashed into the truck rotated and then crashed into the back of a tractor-trailer that was stopped and waiting to turn east onto South 16th Avenue.
The second driver involved in the race avoided an impact and kept driving southbound on U.S. 41, troopers said.
FHP recovered the vehicle on Wednesday and said the driver is speaking with troopers. Charges are pending at this time.
The driver who crashed into the pick-up, a 33-year-old man from Tampa, suffered minor injuries, FHP said. The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured.
