Driver ingested pills, cocaine while speeding Corvette through Florida Keys, cops say

A Cape Coral man remains hospitalized Monday night after police in the Florida Keys say he refused to pull over the day before while speeding up the island chain in his Corvette — snorting cocaine and popping pills all the while.

Though Odelin Regis is receiving treatment in a Miami-Dade hospital, the 25-year-old is also under arrest on a slew of charges, including cocaine possession, marijuana possession, reckless driving, driving under the influence and fleeing and eluding police.

According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, deputies first noticed him at mile marker 35 heading north on U.S. 1 around noon, traveling at more than 100 mph. Police dispatchers had also received several calls at the time about the speeding Chevy, sheriff’s office spokesman Adam Linhardt said.

Deputies and Florida Highway Patrol troopers made several tries to convince him to pull over, but Linhardt said he kept going. Deputies have a policy to normally not chase fleeing cars. Instead, they radio to colleagues further ahead on the highway.

Deputies laid down tire spikes on the Channel 2 Bridge, forcing the car to come to a stop at mile marker 74, Linhardt said.

But the chase wasn’t finished. Regis got out of the car and fled, Linhardt added, until deputies finally caught up to and arrest him. A woman in the car with him was not taken into custody.

Then came the findings. Inside the car, which was a rental, deputies recovered $27,300 in cash, about 3.3 grams of cocaine and 2.8 ounces of marijuana, Linhardt said.

Deputies also found a loaded .45 caliber handgun near the Channel 2 Bridge. Lindhardt said deputies are investigating whether Regis tossed the weapon out of the car during the pursuit.

Because Regis ingested the drugs during the pursuit, deputies took him to Mariners Hospital in Tavernier to be evaluated. He was later taken to a hospital in Miami-Dade County for further treatment.

Linhardt said his condition as of Monday night was not available, adding it is not immediately known what kind of pills he ingested.

Information on Regis’ bond was not immediately available.

This story was originally published November 20, 2023 at 7:55 PM.

David Goodhue

Miami Herald

305-923-9728

David Goodhue covers the Florida Keys and South Florida for FLKeysNews.com and the Miami Herald. Before joining the Herald, he covered Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of the University of Delaware.