Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Bodies on the beach may be linked to dramatic Jeep chase
From daybreak on Tuesday, residents of an oceanside neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale tried to grapple with the gruesome discovery of two dead people found on the beach near Galt Ocean Mile.
As police searched for clues, the flurry of police shifted about a mile south when the driver of a Jeep clipped a Porsche and a golf cart before leading more than a dozen police officers on a nearly 20-mile chase up Interstate 95.
Seven hours later, police were still questioning the man in the Jeep, said Casey Liening, a spokeswoman for the Fort Lauderale Police Department.
Police confirmed they’re looking into whether the stabbings of two men are linked to the dramatic chase and capture of the man driving the white Jeep Wrangler.
Police did not identify
either of the dead people, explain how they were killed or reveal who found them behind the high-end L’Hermitage condominium.
Marty Bilowich said he noticed the Jeep parked Monday night in an empty lot on Center Street. He noticed how nice it was and how it had a luggage rack and what he thought were out-of-state plates.
Tuesday, at around 8:30 a.m., he saw it again.
Sonia Coble, who also lives nearby, said her RING doorbell camera recorded the man beside the Jeep in the empty lot on Monday. She said he looked out of place.
The following morning, she said heard a commotion outside — screams and a police siren.
“And then I heard, ‘He’s getting away,’” Coble said.
While police were talking to the victims, the man in the Jeep returned only to speed off again, police said in a statement. That’s when police gave chase up the interstate.
Police appeared to be able to separate the Jeep from other motorists as it moved in on the driver. Once in the Boca Raton area, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper was captured in television footage inching toward the Jeep and clipping it on the rear driver’s side.
The impact caused the Jeep to spin 180 degrees and travel backwards up the interstate before rolling.
After landing on its side, officers drew their guns as they approached the toppled Jeep. Police removed the top and pulled the man from the vehicle, placing him on his stomach and handcuffing him.
The dramatic footage was broadcast live by WSVN-Ch. 7.
Police, saying the cases are under investigation, have not released the name of the Jeep’s driver.
Detective Ali Adamson, in a statement about the bodies Tuesday morning, said police did not believe the public was in danger. She said the deaths were not the result of a murdersuicide, but she did not elaborate on why there was no apparent threat to the public.
Jose Louis Sierra Jr. has lived in a condo near the beach for about five years. He was out for a walk when he saw police cars.
He said he heard earlier that bodies were found on the beach but was stunned to learn it was by where he lived. “I was caught by surprise,” he said.
Anyone who may have heard or witnessed anything suspicious overnight or at daybreak along the beach is asked to contact Detective Jason Wood at 954-828-5534.