A 19-year-old West Palm Beach man is facing felony charges after Palm Beach County deputies say he drove a pickup truck inside a private Delray Beach warehouse during a series of unauthorized car meets that left roughly $15,000 in damage. Alex David Interian was arrested and booked for his role in two separate takeover events at the same warehouse, according to investigators.
The warehouse, located at 14130 FL-7 and owned by FRP Holdings, became the site of at least two unauthorized gatherings in late April and early May, as reported by CBS12. Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office deputies were first alerted to a car meet at a Wawa located at 10100 W. Atlantic Ave. before later being told about a takeover happening at the nearby warehouse. When roughly 30 cars fled the scene at a high rate of speed, investigators were left to piece together what had happened inside.
What they found was extensive. Chemical debris from fire extinguishers was scattered throughout the warehouse, and burnout tire marks covered the floor. PBSO described the gathering as a takeover, and investigators say Interian himself performed vehicle stunts that left tire marks behind, driving a 2022 Chevrolet Silverado inside the structure during the incident.
Identified Through Social Media, Charged With Two Felonies
Investigators say Interian was identified through social media posts tied to the events. He was also linked to an earlier takeover at the same warehouse, on April 25, where the group reportedly lit fireworks during the gathering. Between the two incidents, he was involved in two separate unauthorized car meets at the location, according to the sheriff's office.
PBSO charged Interian with criminal mischief involving property damage exceeding $1,000, along with burglary of a structure using a vehicle to cause damage. The second charge carries especially steep exposure under Florida law. Florida Statute 810.02 elevates burglary of a structure to a first-degree felony, punishable by up to life in prison, whenever a vehicle is used as an instrument to cause more than $1,000 in structural or property damage, according to the Sammis Law Firm. Most non-violent structural burglaries are only charged as second- or third-degree felonies unless a vehicle inflicts the damage, the firm notes. Separately, the criminal mischief charge itself is classified as a third-degree felony under Florida Statute 806.13, exposing a defendant to up to five years in state prison, five years of probation, and as much as $5,000 in fines when damage totals $1,000 or more, per Richard Hornsby.
Part of a Statewide Crackdown on Car Takeovers
The Delray Beach case lands amid an aggressive statewide push against organized street takeovers. Florida lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1764 in 2024, which took effect that July and formally defined a coordinated street takeover as an event involving 10 or more vehicles, while sharply increasing criminal penalties, license revocations, and vehicle seizure authority, according to the Florida Senate. The law followed a surge in unauthorized street meets across South Florida.
That surge shows up in the numbers. Statewide citations for street racing and stunt driving rose from roughly 850 in 2019 to more than 2,400 in 2023, according to state traffic records cited by the Miami New Times, which notes social media has accelerated how quickly these unauthorized meets get organized. Under the state's enhanced racing laws, a second takeover conviction within one year is a third-degree felony carrying up to five years in prison, while later offenses within five years escalate to a second-degree felony carrying up to 15 years, according to a report from WKMG. Even people who merely attend a takeover as spectators face non-criminal traffic infractions, three license points, and civil fines of up to $400 under Florida Statute 316.191, the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles agency notes.
Enforcement in Palm Beach County has been active well before this case. The sheriff's office ran targeted operations including Operation Hot Wheels in early 2024, which produced multiple arrests and more than 150 traffic citations in a single night against illegal car meets. In April 2023, deputies arrested seven people between the ages of 16 and 26 after a group attempted a street takeover at the intersection of Jupiter Farms Road and Indiantown Road, according to the Palm Beach Post.
The state's response has continued to escalate this year. In June, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a statewide initiative directing the Office of Statewide Prosecution to partner with local law enforcement to go after organized takeover networks using the state's anti-gang and public disorder statutes, according to a release from My Florida Legal. And earlier this week, Florida Highway Patrol troopers arrested 10 people and impounded four vehicles after a takeover involving more than 100 cars shut down Interstate 75 near Thonotosassa, underscoring how large and disruptive these gatherings have become across the state.
