GIBSONTON, Fla. (WFLA) – Authorities say four teens were in a car that was traveling nearly 130 mph before it flipped and crashed into a utility pole in the Gibsonton area early Tuesday morning.
Two of the teens were ejected from the vehicle. Troopers say they found marijuana and alcoholic beverages inside the car.
Investigators say around 12:23 a.m., a Florida Highway Patrol trooper in an unmarked vehicle saw the 2004 Nissan Maxima driving southbound on Interstate-75 at speeds approaching 130 mph. The Nissan’s headlights were not turned on.
The Nissan passed the FHP trooper, who attempted to pull over the speeding car as it got off I-75 at the Gibsonton Drive exit. Once on the exit ramp, the driver of the Nissan lost control of the car, which left the road and went onto the outside shoulder.
The Nissan then overturned multiple times before hitting a tree line and then a utility pole.
The driver of the Nissan, 18-year-old Tyler Wilkinson, and passenger Keely Nicole Faircloth, 19, were ejected from the car. They were not wearing seat belts. Faircloth, of Riverview, and Wilkinson, of Lithia, both suffered serious injuries, according to a FHP report.
Michael Wayne Osborne, 18, of Riverview, and a 17-year-old girl also from Riverview suffered minor injuries. They were wearing seat belts.
Troopers say they found alcohol and marijuana in the car and believe the crash was alcohol related. Charges are pending the outcome of the investigation.
