PCSO: Winter Haven man killed in motorcycle crash

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a fatal crash that claimed the life of a Winter Haven man early Saturday morning. 

According to deputies, 26-year-old Freddie Wardlaw, III of Winter Haven, was driving a blue 2004 Suzuki Sport motorcycle shortly before 2 a.m. on Cypress Gardens Boulevard near Cypress Gardens Road at a high rate of speed when he struck a curb while entering a slight curve in the roadway and struck the Mid-Florida Credit Union sign.

Investigators say Wardlaw was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, but suffered blunt-force trauma injuries and died at the scene. 

The westbound lanes of the boulevard were closed for approximately three hours.