Photo: Screenshot from LiveLeak
Forget about the police, speed cameras and radars, this man from Florida has a better solution, and he’s even tried to apply it. It got him a night in jail and who knows how many others in prison, but hear him out, at least.
The man’s name is Carl Blahnik, 59, and he appears to be homeless, living in the woods near Coco Plum Beach, which is at the other end of the town from where his little run-in with the law took place.
Just before midnight on Tuesday night, Carl noticed a backhoe lying unused near the Marathon Community Park at mile marker 48.5 on the U.S. 1. Since the keys were left in - because that’s what responsible people do - he hopped in and began what was going to be one of the slowest police pursuits, but also one of the most destructive.
Carl picked up some boulders and began to drive on the Seven Mile Bridge, dragging the pneumatic jackhammer arm behind on the road surface causing sparks to fly like it was the 4th of July. The police were quickly on the scene, but there wasn’t much the cruisers could do to stop the large vehicle.
After close to an hour and a half during which Carl went up and down the bridge, occasionally damaging the side rails while constantly scraping the asphalt, Mr. Blahnik finally drove the backhoe off the bridge and so the spike strips could be deployed. The move worked, and so the vehicle was brought to a halt.
The Sheriff’s department's spokesperson said that Blahnik looked like he had previous experience driving this type of equipment, showing the kind of skill that couldn’t be placed solely on beginner’s luck. KeysInfoNet reports that Carl Blahnik is now charged with felony counts of fleeing police, grand theft auto, aggravated assault, and criminal mischief, plus misdemeanor counts of reckless driving, failing to register a motor vehicle, littering and digging up a public road. Let’s just say that, if he was previously homeless, he’ll certainly find a roof over his head for the next few years. And some bars in front of it.
As for his motivation, it’s actually a little heart-warming to know that he did all this with everybody’s safety in mind. While seriously jeopardizing that of the people who happened to drive around him before the police closed the traffic. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, we’d assume.
[LIVELEAK=http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ecb_1455648432]
Just before midnight on Tuesday night, Carl noticed a backhoe lying unused near the Marathon Community Park at mile marker 48.5 on the U.S. 1. Since the keys were left in - because that’s what responsible people do - he hopped in and began what was going to be one of the slowest police pursuits, but also one of the most destructive.
Carl picked up some boulders and began to drive on the Seven Mile Bridge, dragging the pneumatic jackhammer arm behind on the road surface causing sparks to fly like it was the 4th of July. The police were quickly on the scene, but there wasn’t much the cruisers could do to stop the large vehicle.
After close to an hour and a half during which Carl went up and down the bridge, occasionally damaging the side rails while constantly scraping the asphalt, Mr. Blahnik finally drove the backhoe off the bridge and so the spike strips could be deployed. The move worked, and so the vehicle was brought to a halt.
The Sheriff’s department's spokesperson said that Blahnik looked like he had previous experience driving this type of equipment, showing the kind of skill that couldn’t be placed solely on beginner’s luck. KeysInfoNet reports that Carl Blahnik is now charged with felony counts of fleeing police, grand theft auto, aggravated assault, and criminal mischief, plus misdemeanor counts of reckless driving, failing to register a motor vehicle, littering and digging up a public road. Let’s just say that, if he was previously homeless, he’ll certainly find a roof over his head for the next few years. And some bars in front of it.
As for his motivation, it’s actually a little heart-warming to know that he did all this with everybody’s safety in mind. While seriously jeopardizing that of the people who happened to drive around him before the police closed the traffic. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, we’d assume.
[LIVELEAK=http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ecb_1455648432]
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