Felony traffic stop slows traffic as tourists leave the Keys
Tourists heeding the order to leave the Florida Keys were delayed early Sunday afternoon when Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputies flattened the tires of a speeding car and ordered the occupants out with guns drawn.
The county last week mandated all tourists staying in Florida Keys hotels and short-term rentals to be out of their rooms effective 6 p.m. Sunday, so the felony traffic stop delayed those trying to get out ahead of the deadline.
The hotel and lodging closure was done as an effort to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19.
The car came to a final stop at mile marker 67 in Long Key, said Adam Linhardt, sheriff’s office spokesman.
County dispatch began receiving calls about the southbound speeding car minutes earlier, Linhardt said.
Linhardt did not have immediate details about the car’s occupants, including how many there were inside the vehicle, but he did warn drivers to expect backups on the Keys only highway.
This is a developing story, and more details will be added as more information becomes available.
