Man Left Scene Of Crash And Came Back, Troopers Say

There was a thick fog, but it wasn't difficult finding one of the accident victims Saturday morning following a thunderous crash along U.S. 19.

All authorities had to do was follow a trail of blood.

Mitchell D. Vliet, 19, of Spring Hill, was discovered near a convenience store across the street from where he had injured himself a few hours earlier. The two-vehicle accident claimed the life of Troy J. Schultz, 41, of Weeki Wachee.

Blood could be found on the street, in front of a trailer along the road and behind the store, witnesses said.

Vliet, who was taken to Oak Hill Hospital for serious injuries, is not cooperating with authorities, said Trooper Steve Gaskins, a spokesman with the Florida Highway Patrol. That is why all of the details are not known.

What is known is that Vliet left the scene of the accident, was picked up a short distance away and was brought back to the scene hours later in a pickup truck, Gaskins said.

Troopers are not sure whether Vliet was picked up by someone driving by or by someone he knew.

"We wouldn't have been surprised finding him dead somewhere," Gaskins said, recalling the search for him Saturday morning. "He had been through quite a bit of trauma."

He would not get specific about his injuries, but did say he had been bleeding severely.

Blood droplets also were seen on the porch where Vliet might have been hiding at one point, witnesses said.

"His car was totally mangled," said Kathy Boivin, the deli manager at the store across the street from the accident.

The head-on collision occurred shortly after 3 a.m. along U.S. 19 in front of the entrance to Grizzly Bear Lane. The southbound lanes were closed for four hours, according to an FHP report.

Boivin, who opened the store 90 minutes after the crash, recalled seeing the two-door Ford that Vliet had either been riding in or driving. It still had not been removed from the street.

"It was completely smashed. That's how bad the car was," she said. "It's a miracle the boy is still alive."

Gaskins said it is not known whether Vliet was in the driver's or passenger's seat because of the "amount of blood in and around the car."

It also is possible there might have been another person in the vehicle. Because Vliet is not talking, authorities will have to wait for a DNA test, Gaskins said.

The Ford is registered to Vliet, he said.

Schultz was driving a 1998 Kia sport utility vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Troopers said Vliet's Ford was traveling northbound and Schultz was driving southbound along U.S. 19 when the Ford crossed the 30-foot median and smashed into the front end of the Kia.

The Ford was so damaged, it seemed "almost impossible" for Vliet to squeeze out of the car if he had been driving, Gaskins said.

"The (front) seat was pushed all the way into the steering wheel," he said.

An investigation continues.