Suspected carjacking altercation leads to crash on SR 528 in Cocoa

Passenger dumped in road before car sped through intersection, witness says

COCOA, Fla. – Two men are in the hospital after a hit-and-run crash that stalled traffic on U.S. 1 near State Road 528 on Tuesday.

Cocoa police spokeswoman Yvonne Martinez said investigators are looking into claims that the car involved in the crash may have been involved in a carjacking in Merritt Island right before the incident at 5 p.m.

Witnesses told News 6 they saw the blue car exit the Beachline and dump a passenger in the road before speeding through the intersection.

"We just saw the blue car come flying through the intersection and just T-bone her," Sarah Pineo said, adding that the car crashed into a woman driving a red pickup truck. "She spun around, went on the other side of the median and almost hit a pole. She came back through and the kid pulled himself out of the car and jumped over the fence."

A police helicopter took to the air to search for the driver, who was caught about a half-mile away from the crash scene.

William Mathis was booked into the Brevard County Jail Wednesday at 12:40 a.m. in connection with the crash.

Martinez said he and his passenger were both taken to a local hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Detectives are working to figure out what happened and how the men were injured.


About the Author:

Erik Sandoval joined the News 6 team as a reporter in May 2013 and became an Investigator in 2020. During his time at News 6, Erik has covered several major stories, including the 2016 Presidential campaign. He was also one of the first reporters live on the air at the Pulse Nightclub shooting.