Two men have been charged in a stolen vehicle pursuit that resulted in a crash that killed a passenger on Interstate 75.
At around 4:10 a.m. on Sept. 27, an Ocala police officer spotted a Service Pest Control vehicle, which had been reported stolen the previous week, entering I-75 north from Blitchton Road, according to a Marion County Sheriff’s Office media release. The vehicle then began traveling at a high rate of speed and fled when a traffic stop was initiated. The driver lost control of the 2014 Dodge Ram truck on the northbound off-ramp at Exit 358 and crashed into a concrete utility pole. Ocala Police Department have identified the four men in the vehicle as 23-year-old driver Leron Devonte Graham, cab passenger Kiyoshan Demarcus Blair, 20, and passengers in the bed of the truck as 20-year-old Kristoph Davis and Donovan Saldania-Scott.
Graham and Blair exited the vehicle and fled southeast on foot, but were apprehended. OPD backup arrived at the scene and made contact with Davis and Saldania-Scott, who were in the bed of the truck. Davis was unresponsive, and urgent calls for EMS were made.
All four men were immediately transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center for treatment. Saldania-Scott was the first to be released following a voluntary interview at the police department. Davis succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead on Sept. 29.
Graham and Blair had outstanding warrants and were transported to the Marion County Jail once released from the hospital.
Graham was charged with auto theft, fleeing or eluding law enforcement by driving at high speeds and causing serious bodily injury to another and driving while license revoked. Blair was charged with giving a false name to law enforcement. Bond was set at $35,000 for Graham, and $1,000 for Blair.
