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Man charged in deadly strip club crash stands trial
FOX 13's Kylie Jones reports.
TAMPA, Fla. - A man is on trial in Hillsborough County for allegedly plowing his semi-truck into a group outside a gentlemen's club, killing one person.
Dylan Fogle is facing several charges, including murder and attempted murder. He's accused of crashing his semi-truck into a group outside Emperors Gentlemen's Club in August 2024.
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The backstory:
Fogle and his friend, who he worked at a trucking company with, visited Emperors Gentlemen's Club on Aug. 14, 2024. An employee, who also worked security at times, testified that Fogle was interacting inappropriately with one of the dancers and was kicked out.
The employee said the dancer alerted him about the interaction and Fogle was kicked out.
"I put my arm behind him and tried to like, usher him out, and then he turned, and when he turned, I picked him up and I kind of carried him out under his arms like you would carry a toddler," Joshua Sanders, the club's VIP host, said.
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During opening statements on Tuesday morning, the prosecutor said Fogle eventually left the club on foot. She said he was gone for about an hour and returned with his semi-truck.
"He made more than 53 phone calls between the time that he leaves the club and the time this event occurs, blowing people up, sending text messages," Christina Berkowicz, a prosecutor with the 13th Judicial Circuit said. "The evidence is going to show that he had the intent to do what he did."
The state showed text messages that Fogle sent before the crash. One of the text messages read, "Goodbye, I'm going to prison for vehicular manslaughter."
The state also showed surveillance from outside the club of Fogle's friend getting thrown out of the club by a group of men. Seconds later, the footage shows Fogle's truck slam into the group, killing one man and hurting two employees.
"As soon as he saw human beings, he came and drove that truck, that weapon of his choice, towards them," Berkowicz said.
The other side:
The defense began its opening statement with dramatic video of Fogle being treated by paramedics after the crash. He could be heard wailing and yelling, following the crash.
His public defender said Fogle was in a state of hysteria, and was saying things like, he "was under attack," and talking about "four or five men."
"This is not pre-meditated murder," Maria Dunker, Fogle's public defender, said. "The evidence in this case is going to show that at the time that Dylan Fogle drove his truck through the parking lot and crashed into the side of the Emperor's Gentlemen's Club, he had just one goal in mind. To help his friend."
The defense also said Fogle didn't fight back when he was being kicked out of the club.
"He doesn't fight the person that's kicking him out of the club," Dunker said. "He doesn't throw any punches. You're not going to hear any evidence that he was attacking anyone. He was stating his case. He was arguing, 'Hey, let me stay.'"
What's next:
The trial is expected to continue Wednesday morning.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered during the trial against Dylan Fogle.