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Car Burglary Suspects Caught After Chase

Tribune photo by ANDY JONES

Pasco County sheriff’s deputies hold a car burglary suspect after he was caught in a canal in the Regency Park subdivision.

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By DAVID SOMMER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 8, 2008

PORT RICHEY - Two soggy young men are behind bars after they fled from a traffic stop and led deputies on a brief chase Thursday through the Regency Park subdivision.

The men, who were suspects in car burglaries, dove into a murky green canal behind the old Service Merchandise store near U.S. 19 just north of Regency Boulevard and were corralled by deputies shortly after 3:30 p.m.

Sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll said deputies began looking for a red Isuzu pickup Thursday afternoon after two men drove away in such a vehicle after being spotted burglarizing a car at Robert K. Rees Memorial Park at Green Key Beach.

The men are also suspects in a vehicle burglary that took place earlier Thursday at Anclote River Park, Doll said.

A deputy spotted a red Isuzu with two men aboard driving in Regency Park and attempted to pull it over, Doll said. The truck sped off and led the deputy down Kingston Court, which is a cul-de-sac.

The driver swerved around a line of boulders deliberately placed in one yard to deter motorists from driving on the grass, then drove between two homes before stopping in a rear yard adjacent to the approximately 20-foot-wide drainage canal.

The red truck and a deputy's cruiser remained in the backyard at 6919 Kingston Court following the incident. Neighbors said the cul-de-sac is a popular playground and that it was lucky no children were present when the vehicles came through.

Doll said both suspects entered the canal but one came out and was captured. The second man attempted to swim down the canal toward U.S. 19 but was pulled from bushes near the highway.

After their capture, one of the men mugged for a news camera and made an obscene gesture before shooting a grin to the second suspect, who was in a patrol car.

Doll said details on the charges the men face would be available today.

Reporter David Sommer can be reached at (727) 815-1087 or dsommer@tampatrib.com.

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