Crime & Safety
Deputies: Motorcyclist Dies in Palm Harbor Accident After Fleeing
Daniel Lavoy Akins, 27, of Seffner, lost control of his motorcycle Sunday night on Belcher Road and was thrown from it. Deputies had tried to pull him over earlier for speeding, and alcohol may have been a factor, officials said.
A motorcyclist who died in a Belcher Road accident in Palm Harbor had fled from deputies who tried to pull him over for speeding, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office reports.
Daniel Lavoy Akins, 27, of Seffner, lost control of his 2005 Suzuki motorcycle around 11:13 p.m. Sunday on Belcher, just south of Grovewood Boulevard, as he tried to negotiate a curve, investigators said. Akins was thrown from the motorcycle.
Two citizens heard the crash and called for assistance. Akins was taken to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, where he died from his injuries just after midnight, a sheriff's office spokesperson said.
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Akins had been seen speeding and weaving through traffic in Oldsmar earlier in the night while heading westbound to U.S. 19, the sheriff's office said. Akins fled from a patrol deputy who had attempted to stop him for speeding but did not pursue him.
Akins was last seen heading northbound on Belcher Road from the area of Nebraska Avenue "at a high rate of speed," a spokesperson said.
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Investigators say the crash may be alcohol-related, and an autopsy and toxicology tests are scheduled.
The investigation continues.
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