TAVARES, Fla.—Tavares Police Department has released the names of the two men involved in a deadly single-car crash early Saturday morning.
TPD believes Anthony Petchonka Jr., 24, of Tavares was driving a 2003 black Acura coupe when he crashed shortly before 2:30 a.m. near the intersection of Dead River Road and Baytree Boulevard. The impact ejected Petchonka Jr., and his passenger Jordan Debitetto, 22, of Astatula.
Inside Lake originally reported Debitetto was from Apopka, as listed on his driver license, but TPD has since discovered he lives in Astatula, TPD Public Information Officer Courtney Sullivan said. Petchonka Jr. was pronounced deceased on the scene and Debitetto was transported to an area hospital, where he remains in critical condition.
WETHERSFIELD, Conn.—A Connecticut crash claimed the lives of two Sorrento women and a Virginia man Sunday and sent three Sorrento children to the hospital, according to the Connecticut State Police (CSP.)
Shortly before 5 a.m. Sunday, Kory Watson, 40, of Hillsville, Va., was driving a 2003 Lincoln Aviator on Interstate 91 South when he veered into the right lane for an unknown reason and collided with the rear of a tractor-trailer parked on the right shoulder near Exit 25.
Watson, and one of his passengers, Lacey Marie Price, 32, of Sorrento, were pronounced deceased on the scene. Passenger Rebecca Marie Schutte, 36, was transported to Hartford Hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries and three children, all of Sorrento, were transported to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center with “suspected minor injuries,” according to CSP. The relationship between the women and the children was not released. The tractor-trailer driver, Kiran Johns, 26, of Fairless Hills, Pa., was not injured.
The crash closed Interstate 91 South for several hours Sunday and remains under investigation.
TAVARES, Fla.—A Tavares man was killed in a single-car crash early Saturday morning and his passenger is in critical condition at a local trauma center, according to Tavares Police Department.
TPD traffic homicide investigators responded to the scene near Dead River Road and Baytree Boulevard overnight and TPD released preliminary information Saturday morning. TPD believes the 2003 black Acura coupe being driven by a 24-year-old Tavares man was traveling on Dead River Road when it crashed shortly before 2:30 a.m. Saturday, ejecting both the driver and his 22-year-old male passenger of Apopka.
The crash killed the Tavares man, and the Apopka man is in critical condition, TPD Public Information Officer Courtney Sullivan told Inside Lake. There were no witnesses to the crash. A portion of Dead River Road remained closed at press time and officers are rerouting traffic in the area.
TAVARES, Florida—More than a year after a beloved local musician was killed in a hit-and-run crash, the driver pleaded guilty to leaving the scene and was sentenced to five years in prison Monday.
Inside Lake was in the courtroom when Justin Thomas Flower, 39, pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of the crash that killed Robert “Bobby” Wilson July 23, 2022. Flower was originally charged with manslaughter and leaving the scene of a crash causing death in November 2022, but as part of his plea agreement, the manslaughter charge was dropped, and he pleaded guilty to the remaining charge.
He was sentenced to five years in prison and must serve a minimum of four years but will get credit for the nearly four months he served following his arrest in November 2022; Flower was held on no bond in the Lake County Jail until the bond was reduced to $5,000 in late April, and as a condition of his bond he was fitted with a GPS ankle monitor. Flower will also lose his driver license for five years after he is released from prison.
Wilson’s mother, Valerie Newman and his son, Justin Wilson attended the hearing, but decided not to speak. Newman was visibly emotional as the charge and agreement was read in open court. She shared the statement she planned to read Monday with Inside Lake, and we chose to publish it in its entirety.
This is a heartbreaking day for me today. Part of me did not want to give any kind of a statement. But my heart needs to give a statement. I guess I just don’t understand why we even should be here. You and my son were friends, I thought. I just can’t understand, cannot comprehend, how you could be speeding down that road, hit and kill him, then drive away as if nothing ever happened. As if his life was worthless. But you did. But you need to know, his life was not worthless. Not only to his family, but to the hundreds, thousands, of people who have contacted us with broken hearts. He was precious to me, to his brother, to his stepfather, and to his children and grandchildren, and nieces and nephews. You will go to prison now. Sadly, if you hadn’t left him, you wouldn’t be. If you had stayed and called 911 immediately, his life might have been saved. But we will never know. I want you to know, however, that I do forgive you. I will pray for you. I will pray that you have an experience with God that will cushion you and guide you through the next few years. So that at some point in your life you can help to guide other young people into making the right decisions for their lives. I want Bobby’s life to be valuable and cherished. I want people to remember not only his music, but the amazing love he had for all of his friends, including you. – Valerie Newman
Robert “Bobby” Wilson was killed by a hit-and-run-driver in July 2022.
On July 23, 2022, Robert “Bobby” Wilson, 50, was attempting to push his minivan off a curb on Old U.S. Highway 441 across from Dairy Queen in Mount Dora when good Samaritan Michael Dickey saw him and stopped to help.
“I thought, man, somebody is going to hit him,” Dickey told Inside Lake earlier this year, “and I’ll be damned if what I thought happened.
Wilson’s tire could not gain any traction and after unsuccessfully trying to push the minivan off the curb, Dickey suggested they use his truck, a Nissan Frontier. Dickey had a flashlight in his hand and was starting to attach a strap to the minivan when the white 2015 Hyundai Genesis Flower was driving came speeding down Old U.S. Highway 441.
The Hyundai came straight at them, Dickey jumped out the way and the car struck Wilson first throwing him several feet, then struck the back end of Wilson’s minivan and finally Dickey’s truck, hitting it with such force, it spun around. All three vehicles were totaled.
All three vehicles involved in the crash that killed Robert “Bobby” Wilson were totaled. PHOTOS: Michael Dickey
Wilson was airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center after the crash, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy later determined Wilson died from a skull fracture and brain bleed caused by the crash.
Flower fled the scene and managed to drive the mangled Hyundai about a half of a mile down the road. He got out of the car and, “He was pacing around and around,” Dickey told Inside Lake. Two unidentified women stopped to help him, and he reportedly told them he was fine, and “There’s a bad accident down there you need to go the other way.” The women continued toward the crash site, Dickey said, and “suddenly he (Flower) was gone,” but he left the disabled Hyundai in the middle of the road.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Mount Dora Police Department contacted the registered owner of the Hyundai and she said she lent the car to Flower and Flower was at a home on Morningside Drive, less than a mile from the crash site. MDPD spoke with Flower, and he said he struck a dog that jumped into the roadway. He claimed to have no memory of the crash and woke up the following morning at the home on Morningside Drive wondering how he got there. During later questioning Flower admitted to drinking “a beer and a shot” prior to the crash, the affidavit states.
Nearly three months later, a warrant was issued for Flower’s arrest, and he ran to Jackson County, North Carolina, Wilson’s daughter Emily Lowe told Inside Lake in January. He was apprehended in North Carolina in late November and extradited to Lake County Dec. 30 after he spent more than a month in jail in North Carolina, according to Lake County Clerk of Court online records. He was held in LCJ until he bonded out in April and was taken back into custody Monday after his plea.
LEESBURG, Fla.—A 47-year-old Leesburg man was killed on County Road 44 Friday night, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The man was walking southbound across the eastbound lane near Rhett Road in the Leesburg area when he was struck by a 2019 Chrysler 3000 being driven by a 37-year-old man shortly before 9:30 p.m. The crash scene is near a Dollar General.
The driver and his 38-year-old female passenger, both of Leesburg, were not injured. The pedestrian was pronounced dead on the scene, FHP Trooper Migdalisis Garcia said.
The fatal crash closed County Road 44 for several hours and remains under investigation.
CLERMONT, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol in investigating a crash that killed two people Saturday afternoon on Florida’s Turnpike in Clermont.
The crash, involving a 2001 Chevrolet Silverado, occurred at 2:30 p.m. near mile marker 280 in the southbound lanes and killed the driver and one passenger; a second passenger was transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center with serious injuries, according to Trooper Migdalisis Garcia.
MINNEOLA, Fla.—A fundraising account has been established to benefit the family of the Lake Minneola High School (LMHS) student who tragically passed away Monday.
Sherman “Isaiah” Vannoy, a 17-year-old senior, was on a bicycle when he was struck by a school bus before daylight Monday morning at the entrance of LMHS.
Mary Laurenzi, 78, of Leesburg, who was hired by Lake County Schools in November 2021, was driving the school bus southbound on Hancock Road, south of Fox Trail Avenue, in the left turn lane. Vannoy was riding a bicycle northbound on the north sidewalk of Hancock Road approaching the stop sign at the intersection. Vannoy entered the crosswalk and Laurenzi attempted to make a left turn to enter LMHS and struck Vannoy, Trooper Migdalisis Garcia said in a press release.
Laurenzi saw Vannoy in the crosswalk and swerved to the left, and the school bus collided with Vannoy and continued off the roadway and struck a stop sign and a chain-link fence, Garcia said. Vannoy was transported to South Lake Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries; Laurenzi and her passengers, a 55-year-old woman of Leesburg and an 18-year-old woman of Minneola were not injured. The crash remains under investigation.
Jennifer White, a member of Vannoy’s family, established the benefit account Tuesday morning and stated, “Sherman’s family is so thankful for the love and prayers you’ve sent their way.”
At press time, the account had raised $1,700 of its $10,000 goal; to donate click here.
MINNEOLA, Fla.— Lake County Schools (LCS) has released the names of the teen and the bus driver involved in a fatal crash Monday morning at Lake Minneola High School.
Sherman Vannoy, 17, was a senior at Lake Minneola High School, Sherri Owens spokesperson for LCS told Inside Lake.
“This was a very difficult day for all of us at Lake County Schools,” Owens said in an email. “We are in touch with the family and are offering our support. We have grief counselors on campus this week for any students or faculty members who may need their services.”
The bus driver, 78-year-old Mary Laurenzi, of Leesburg, was hired in November 2021, Owens said.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the crash and said Laurenzi was driving the bus southbound on Hancock Road, south of Fox Trail Avenue, in the left turn lane. Vannoy was riding a bicycle northbound on the north sidewalk of Hancock Road approaching the stop sign at the intersection. Vannoy entered the crosswalk and Laurenzi attempted to make a left turn to enter Lake Minneola High School, Trooper Migdalisis Garcia said in a press release.
Laurenzi saw Vannoy in the crosswalk and swerved to the left, and the school bus collided with Vannoy and continued off the roadway and struck a stop sign and a chain-link fence, Garcia said. Vannoy was transported to South Lake Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Laurenzi and her passengers, a 55-year-old woman of Leesburg and an 18-year-old woman of Minneola were not injured. The crash remains under investigation.
MINNEOLA, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that killed a 17-year-old bicyclist near Lake Minneola High School Monday morning.
“The crash occurred as the bus was turning left into the school from traveling southbound on Hancock Road,” Trooper Migdalisis Garcia told Inside Lake in an email.
The crash occurred at 6:50 a.m. near Hancock Road and Fox Trail Avenue and troopers are still investigating the sequence of events that resulted in the crash, Garcia said.
The 17-year-old Minneola boy was transported to South Lake Hospital where he was pronounced deceased. The bus driver, a 78-year-old woman from Leesburg, was not injured.
SORRENTO, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol is on scene of a crash that killed a Umatilla man and shut down State Road 46 in both directions.
The preliminary investigation revealed a 2009 Hyundai Sonata being driven by a 42-year-old Umatilla man was traveling westbound on State Road 46 near Wekiva Pines Boulevard around 5:40 p.m. when he veered into the eastbound lane and collided with 2022 Ford E-350 being driven by a 49-year-old Deltona man, FHP Lt. Tara Crescenzi said.
The Umatilla man was transported to HCA Florida Lake Monroe Hospital in Sanford, where he was pronounced deceased. The Deltona man and his passenger, a 14-year-old male, were also transported to HCA Lake Monroe Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The crash shut down State Road 46 between County Road 46A and Osprey Hammock Trail and it was still shut down at press time.
