At least 4 killed, 11 injured after speeding driver hits crowd outside Florida bar

By Asiye Latife Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) - At least four people were killed and 11 others injured when a speeding driver crashed into a crowd outside a bar in the district of Tampa, US state of Florida, early Saturday, police said.

The crash occurred after midnight when police pursued a vehicle, previously linked to a street race, for reckless driving on a nearby highway.

“The driver continued at a high rate of speed and lost control and crashed into a business, hitting more than a dozen people who were outside,” the police department said, adding that there was no indication that the bar was intentionally targeted.

The department said that three victims died at the scene, a fourth later at the hospital, one remains in critical condition, eight are stable, and two with minor injuries declined treatment, and that all 15 victims are adults.

“The suspect was detained on scene and has been identified as 22-year-old Silas Sampson,” the department said, adding that the investigation is ongoing and the Florida Highway Patrol is the lead agency in the investigation.