Driver killed after BSO, FHP chase on Turnpike, 2nd recent death after pursuit
A driver has been killed following a chase by Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies and the Florida Highway Patrol on Florida’s Turnpike at the start of the afternoon rush hour, 10 days after a man was killed in another BSO pursuit, authorities said.
Investigators say deputies were chasing a woman in a stolen vehicle who struck two marked patrol cars Thursday.
Shortly after 4 p.m., Broward deputies assisted Coconut Creek police with a stolen vehicle investigation out of Fort Lauderdale near Sample Road and the Florida Turnpike. According to investigators, the driver of the stolen car struck both a BSO patrol unit and a Coconut Creek police vehicle before fleeing onto Florida’s Turnpike southbound.
“At that point, a pursuit was initiated for aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer,” BSO said in a press release.
The Florida Highway Patrol said it was assisting BSO with a pursuit of a white Ford F250 as it went south on the Turnpike, near mile marker 58, or by the Sunrise Boulevard exit.
“A collision took place as the vehicles traveled southbound, which resulted in a death of a motorist,” FHP said, adding that three cars were involved, including an FHP marked Charger, Ford F250 and Nissan sedan.
BSO did not name the person who died in the crash.
The injured BSO deputy and Coconut Creek officer were taken to hospitals with injuries that were not considered life-threatening, BSO said.
After the chase ended, deputies arrested a woman, who identified herself as Anna Giza, 52. She was also taken to a hospital for treatment, though her injuries are expected to be non-life-threatening. Detectives say they are working to confirm her identity.
She faces multiple charges including murder by another while engaged in a specific felony, two counts of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, aggravated fleeing with serious injury or death, grand-theft auto and resisting an officer without violence.
Second death following a pursuit
The latest incident comes days after 74-year-old Ronald Wilson was killed on Feb. 16 when a Broward Sheriff’s deputy’s patrol car collided with his Toyota pickup truck at a Tamarac intersection. The deputy had been pursuing an SUV reported stolen earlier that night.
READ MORE: Driver rammed stolen Jeep into deputy’s car before chase killed man, BSO says
Authorities said the driver of the stolen Jeep — 30-year-old Sean Paul Holder — had just crashed through a gate at a Flanagan’s Seafood Bar & Grill. Pieces of the fence were lodged on top of the vehicle, the sheriff’s office said. Investigators believe he smashed through the gate after noticing law-enforcement vehicles responding to an alert in Margate, according to his arrest report.
That act constituted felony aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer and triggered a pursuit involving dozens of BSO deputies, the agency said. The chase ended after another deputy used his patrol vehicle to force the Jeep off the road. Holder was arrested; Wilson was killed in the crash.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office, like other law enforcement agencies, has strict guidelines governing when its deputies can chase someone in a car. Under its policy, deputies may initiate a chase when a suspect has committed a “forcible felony,” defined by BSO “as a person using or threatening physical violence against someone else, for example, murder, carjacking, aggravated assault and battery.”
“Vehicle pursuits require greater degrees of caution, skill, common sense, and sound judgment for emergency operations,” the policy states.
Deputies are also authorized to pursue a vehicle in two other situations: When there is a physical breach of a security checkpoint, fence, or barrier at Port Everglades or Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, or when a deputy has “a reasonable belief” that chasing a fleeing vehicle is necessary to prevent death or serious bodily injury.
This story was originally published February 27, 2026 at 10:06 AM.