Driver raced 104 mph because he ‘liked the noise of the exhaust,’ FL cops say

Illegal street racing has an allure of being exciting, but a driver pulled over for going 104 mph said it was the roaring sound that compelled him, according to investigators in Florida.

The arrest happened just after 11 p.m. Tuesday, June 3, in Lehigh Acres, after a deputy spotted three vehicles traveling at a high rate of speed on six-lane Lee Boulevard, according to a Lee County Sheriff’s Office affidavit.

The speed limit in the area is 45 mph and radar “clocked” the vehicles in the 100-mph range, officials said.

All three were stopped, and among the drivers was an 18-year-old who noted he was “racing a Dodge Charger because he liked the noise of the exhaust,” the sheriff’s office reported.

He was arrested and charged with a street racing/stunt driving violation, and his vehicle was impounded, the sheriff’s office said.

Details of the other drivers were not released.

“I have zero tolerance for street racing in Lee County,” Sheriff Carmine Marceno said in a June 5 news release. “Driving an excessive speed and putting yourself, your passengers, and others on the road at risk is an incredibly selfish decision.”

Lehigh Acres is about a 140-mile drive southeast from Tampa.

This story was originally published June 6, 2025 at 12:45 PM with the headline "Driver raced 104 mph because he ‘liked the noise of the exhaust,’ FL cops say."