Seven people injured in night of motorcycle crashes

Seven people injured in night of motorcycle crashes

PINELLAS PARK-There was a lot of mayhem involving motorcycles in the area around U.S.19 and 49th Street in Pinellas Park Wednesday night.

A series of incidents involving eight motorcyclists resulted in seven people being injured –six of them motorcyclists. Police said one of the motorcyclists suffered life-threatening injuries; everyone else involved in the incidents is expected to recover.

The incidents took place within about an hour and shut down parts of U.S.19 and 49th Street Wednesday night.

In the first, at 9 p.m. in the 12100 block of 49th Street, police said three motorcycles were speeding north when one of the riders, Pablo Quintana, 20, of Tarpon Springs, struck the back of a 2001 Lincoln that had just made a U-tum

Quintana, who was thrown 200 feet, suffered serious injuries but is expected to recover.

The driver of the Lincoln, Larhonda Robinson, 17, of Pinellas Park, was treated for minor injuries.

The other two motorcycles were laid down by their riders, Sven Desouza, 36, of Cleanl'ater, and Mikhail Lochan, 19, of Hud­son. Lochan suffered serious injuries, police said, but is expected to recover. Desouza, who slid about 250 feet, was treated at a hospital for a concussion and road rash, and then was released, police said.

All three motorcyclists were wearing helmets, police said. An investigation is ongoing and police have not yet determined whether charges will be filed.

A second serious motorcycle crash occurred about an hour later as authorities investigated two other minor incidents - both also involving motorcycles in the 12500 block of U.S.19 at about 9:40 p.m., Florida Highway Patrol troopers were summoned to that area to investigate an incident in which a car struck a metal object in the road that was then thrown into a motorcycle. The object disabled both the car and motorcycle.

As traffic slowed, another motorcyclist ran into the back of a car. No one was injured in either incident. But, as troopers investigated the two incidents, three motor­cyclists drove by. One of them, Pedro Manuel Perez, 50, of Palm Harbor, ran into the rear of a motorcycle driven by Randall Dean Shoudt, 44, of Clearwa­ ter. Perez was looking at the initial crash scenes when he hit Shoudt's bike, police said. Both Perez and Shoudt fell onto the road. That's when the third motorcycle, driven by Anthony Francese, 67, of Shrewsbury, Mass., slid into Perez. Francese had tried to stop his motorcycle, but could not and was thrown from the bike, police said. Perez suffered life-threatening injuries, police said, and was taken to Bayfront Medical Center. The hospital did not release his condition Thursday.

Shoudt and Francese suffered minor injurie.s and were treated at the scene.

Police said Perez and Shoudt were not wearing helmets. Francese was wearing a skull cap-like helmet, police said

Police say they are still investigating and deciding whether charge will be filed.