A Lehigh Acres man who stole a van is dead after crashing that van into a house.
It all began at approximately 8:30 p.m. last night when the Lee County Sheriff’s Office received a call about a man who was being belligerent and refused to leave the Dollar General store at 701 Gretchen Avenue South in Lehigh Acres.
While deputies were en route, additional calls were received advising the suspect had possibly stolen a tan Dodge van from the store parking lot. It was later learned that a store customer had kept a spare set of keys in his vehicle, and while he was in the store, the suspect was able to locate the keys and steal the vehicle.
Two witnesses saw the suspect jump into the van and take off. Believing the van was being stolen, they followed the van until it crashed into a home at 741 Harry Avenue South. The van crashed through the garage, where it struck two vehicles. Fortunately no one inside the residence was injured.
The driver of the vehicle died as a result of injuries suffered. He has been identified as Robert Gibbons, 46, of 1110 Harry Avenue South, Lehigh Acres.