Florida Highway Patrol troopers arrested a Lakeland man after he crashed a stolen vehicle while driving on Interstate 4.
According to FHP reports, at about 12:41 p.m., Feb. 15, Gurnam and Sarbjit Hayre, of Winter Haven, were traveling eastbound on Interstate 4, east of McIntosh Road, when their vehicle became disabled. Gurnam Hayre pulled the vehicle onto the outside paved shoulder.
Shortly thereafter, Robert Moore, 33, of Lakeland, was driving a stolen 1997 Dodge van eastbound on I-4. He traveled off the roadway and collided with the Hayres’ vehicle. The impact propelled the vehicle forward, which then collided with Gurnam Hayre, who was propelled onto the grass shoulder. Post-impact, Moore’s vehicle rotated clockwise and traveled back across I-4 before coming to final rest in the inside eastbound lane.
Moore exited the van and fled the scene of the crash; however, he was located by a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office deputy at Gallagher Road and Gore Road, just north of I-4.
Following the crash investigation, FHP troopers were later able identify that Moore had been traveling aggressively in a stolen vehicle, at a high rate of speed and cutting in and out of traffic just prior to the collision. He was arrested for reckless driving and leaving the scene of a crash with serious injury, driving while his license was suspended, and possession of the stolen vehicle.