Woman was killed when she was thrown from speeding pickup, Florida police say

A grand theft auto case escalated when the victim died after being thrown from a speeding pickup truck, Florida investigators say.

It happened Tuesday, Feb. 27, in Daytona Beach, as police were meeting with the victim of a motorcycle theft, according to a news release. Daytona Beach is about 55 miles northeast of Orlando.

That meeting took an unusual turn when the victim “called the suspect to the area,” officers said.

“While waiting in the area officers observed the victim get into a white GMC truck. When officers tried to approach the vehicle, it fled with six occupants,” police said.

“The victim was thrown from the moving vehicle in the 600 block of Madison Avenue. One officer stopped to render aid to the female who was unresponsive.”

A witness told WESH the woman was screaming for help from an open door of the pickup, then police said she was thrown out.

She was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead, officials said.

The pickup truck was later found abandoned with no one inside, and a search of the area led to the arrest of the murder suspect, officers said.

Julio Angel Rivera, 45, of Daytona Beach, is charged with second-degree murder; grand theft auto; fleeing and eluding police; driving with license canceled, suspended or revoked; resisting an officer; and possession of a controlled substance, officials said.

“Prior to being taken into custody, Rivera ingested a substance and is currently hospitalized,” police said.

Two other suspects were found as police executed a search warrant at a home on West Coquina Drive, including the man who owns the truck and was driving it when the victim died, police said.

This story was originally published February 29, 2024 at 9:19 AM with the headline "Woman was killed when she was thrown from speeding pickup, Florida police say."