The Tampa Police Department have recovered a submerged vehicle-turned-”artificial reef” near the Courtney Campbell Causeway. Last week, a boater first spotted the barnacle-covered car with a depth finder.
“Until he actually pointed out a tire, I would’ve thought it was an artificial reef or concrete piling,” said detective and dive team commander Greg Weeks in an interview with Bay News 9.
Determined to be a 2007 Dodge Caliber, the sunken set of wheels is now evidence. Detectives are looking into where the car came from — and how it got there.
“The VIN plates had been removed, the license plates had been removed,” Weeks continued, “so it was definitely used in some sort of criminal activity.”
This article appears in Feb 7-14, 2019.