Wauchula police had posted a wanted notice for Mathew Scott Flores even before January 24 in connection with the shooting death of Jose Carlos Martinez. Flores was arrested after a police chase in North Carolina.
Flores is driving the car of the recently missing Gary Levin, a 74-year-old Lyft driver from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. On Thursday, deputies in North Carolina chased Levin’s car at high speed across three counties. It crashed, and they found Flores behind the wheel. As reported on Fox News, Flores was immediately taken to a hospital with unspecified injuries.
Wauchula Police Chief John Eason said that an alleged accomplice in Martinez’s death is also in custody and identified as Stephanie Velgara. The investigation is still ongoing as they could be more suspects involved in the Martinez murder, Yahoo reports.
Meanwhile, Levin’s daughter, Lindsay Dibetta, revealed on Facebook that his father is missing. Her family also hopes Flores would say how and where he got the car.
Palm Beach Gardens Police Department and Levin’s family have been asking for information on his whereabouts to come forward and contact them. (Photo: Palm Beach Gardens Police Department)
According to Palm Beach Garden police, Levin has been “unreachable” since January 30. His car, a red Kia Stinger, was spotted in Gainesville on February 1, a day before Flores’ arrest. It is roughly 400 miles from the North Carolina state line.
Dibetta claims her father last used his phone around 4 p.m. in the Okeechobee area on January 30.
Palm Beach Gardens police say that anyone with information on Levin’s whereabouts must contact them at 561-799-4445. Levin is described as a White male, 5 feet 7 inches, and weighs 70 pounds.
