PASCO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – Three men involved in a hit-and-run crash with a school van carrying developmentally disabled adults thought they had the perfect getaway.
They jumped into a pond.
Their quick run from the law ended abruptly, as Pasco deputies closed in.
It happened Monday morning at the intersection of Collier Parkway and Preakness Boulevard in Land O’ Lakes.
Cops got a lot of help from witnesses. Some chased them to the pond.
Others whipped out their cell phones and snapped pictures of them running away.
People who saw the 9 a.m. crash took photos of the three men dashing away.
They ran south towards Highway 54, deciding to hide out in a nearby pond.
At the crash scene were nine developmentally disabled adults, ages 20 to 57, in a van from the nearby “Learning Your Function” school.
“They were hit pretty hard. The impact totaled the other vehicle. The other vehicle was in a shambles. Our bumper, steel bumper is turned into a U. So they were hit pretty hard,” said school CEO Jim Cracchiolo.
Despite the Toyota’s mangled front end and a ruined bumper of the van, none of the students needed medical attention.
“Definitely shaken up. Several of the students, we had to kind of talk to let them know that everything was okay,” said Cracchiolo.
Pasco County deputies joined the FHP, converging on the area.
They found two men involved in the crash hiding in a pond.
For a time, they had trouble finding the third man, but with help from a helicopter and Pasco County canine officer, Eragon, they dragged him out of the water.
“I’m really glad that our guys are safe. I’m really glad that they were brought to justice, there’s no question there, and everybody made it out okay,” said Jim Cracchiolo.
Deputies later found out the three, from Fort Lauderdale, and with previous burglary charges, had stolen a purse from a staffer at the nearby Discovery Point Daycare.
The three men, identified as Darius Henry, Cecil Ruffin and Willie Cuyler, are facing new charges for the hit-and-run, drug possession, resisting arrest, violation of probation and petite theft.
They are in the Land O’ Lakes jail.WHAT OTHERS ARE CLICKING ON-
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