Search for suspect in Clearwater hit-and-run crash

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Authorities are looking for a man they believe caused a hit-and-run crash in Clearwater Sunday morning.

It happened near the intersection for US Hwy. 19 and Roosevelt Boulevard shortly before 10:00 a.m.

The Florida Highway Patrol says the driver of a 2015 Honda Civic was seen driving 90 miles per hour in a 55 mile per hour speed limit zone.  The trooper who spotted him followed and attempted to stop the car, but the driver fled, veering off onto the US 19 Frontage Road, where the driver crashed into a Honda CR-V.  The impact caused that second car to turn and crash into a third and a fourth vehicle in a chain reaction.  The people in those cars suffered minor injuries.

Troopers say the driver of the first car abandoned his vehicle and ran through a nearby CarMax parking lot and into a Rodeway Inn Hotel where he was last seen.

He is described as a African-American male with shoulder length braided hair; he was wearing a white shirt and blue jean shorts. Anyone who can help identify him is asked to contact the FHP at 813-631-4020, call *FHP or Crime Stoppers at 800-873-TIPS.  Tips can also be submitted online at www.crimestoppersofpinellas.org.