Family Displaced After Stolen Vehicle Crashes Into Pinellas Park Home

PINELLAS PARK, FL — A Pinellas Park family will be temporarily staying with relatives after their home sustained structural damage Friday morning when a stolen car crashed into it.

According to Pinellas Park police, around 5:30 a.m., police spotted a white Kia van swerving between lanes of traffic with no headlights on. Police conducted a traffic stop on 70th Avenue. The driver stopped and an officer began to approach the van. Suddenly, the driver accelerated and fled east on 70th Avenue, according to Pinellas Park police Capt. Adam Geissenberger.

A short time later, the van crashed into an occupied single-family home and the driver escaped on foot, Geissenberger said.

Three people in the home were asleep at the time. One of the residents was thrown across the room due to the impact of the crash, but was not injured, according to police.

The family, however, was forced to leave the home due to structural damage.

Police are still searching for the driver of the van, which was stolen from another home in Pinellas Park Thursday night, police said.