Two persons were arrested over the weekend after a group of automobiles overtook a busy Tampa crossroads and set fire to the center of the road.
Early Saturday morning, Tampa police officers were rushed to the intersection of W. Kennedy Boulevard and N. MacDill Avenue after receiving reports of many automobiles obstructing the traffic.
Aerial footage of the incident shows numerous groups of individuals starting a fire in the intersection while a green Ford Mustang donuts and drives dangerously around it.
“They just started a fire,” one cop can be heard saying in the footage.
After the Mustang finished doing donuts, it drove away from the area.
TPD police on the ground attempted a traffic stop on the car, but it escaped northbound. Officers did not pursue the car; instead, the TPD’s Aviation Unit provided officers with real-time updates on its whereabouts.
According to TPD, the Mustang eventually stopped at the 7-Eleven at 4320 N. MacDill Avenue, where officers detained Anwar Yasser Awdi, 24, and Jawad Yasser Awdi, 19.
The 24-year-old was charged with unlawful racing on a roadway and fleeing to evade an officer, while the 19-year-old was charged with illegal racing on a highway.
“The reckless behavior of those involved in this type of activity is completely unacceptable,” Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw stated. “This form of street takeover endangers not just the participants, but also innocent cars and pedestrians in our town. It should be apparent that individuals who choose to engage in such hazardous behavior will be arrested and their vehicles seized.”
The Mustang was impounded. The police agency stated that the investigation is still ongoing as detectives try to identify more parties involved.