VENICE, Fla. (WFLA) — A 19-year-old was found dead Sunday after authorities located his vehicle overturned in a canal.
According to a release from the City of Venice, at 6:52 a.m. Venice police, along with Venice Fire Rescue units, responded to the area of Ranch Road and Rustic Road regarding reports of a vehicle submerged in the Cow Pen Slough Canal.
At the scene, VFR rescue swimmers entered the water and discovered one person inside the vehicle. However, due to environmental hazards, including fluids and alligators, recovery efforts were halted and a dive team was called to the scene.
An investigation revealed that the vehicle, a Ford Ranger, may have been traveling west on Rustic Road at a high speed when it veered from the roadway and struck a utility pole, causing it to flip into the canal.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials removed two large alligators from the area before Venice divers, along with Sarasota County Sheriff's Special Ops, could assess the vehicle.
According to the City of Venice's public information officer, both agencies confirmed the body of a man trapped inside the truck.
After the truck was removed from the canal, the Medical Examiner's Office identified the man as Fredy Chavez Sanchez, 19.
