Late-night Brickell turned into chaos on December 16, 2025. Sirens pierced the humid air as blue and red lights bounced off high-rises. Then came the crash a stolen Ferrari slamming into a utility pole, sending a shower of sparks skyward from a exploding transformer. Power blinked out across blocks, leaving residents in the dark.
It wasn’t a scene from a movie. It was real-life, and it involved 28-year-old DeShawn Prendergast from the Bronx in New York. According to police, he swiped a 2024 Ferrari Purosangue SUV valued at over $400,000 and took off on a wild pursuit through Miami’s bustling Brickell area. The high-dollar ride and a 2025 Rolls-Royce Cullinan were reported stolen after a botched third-party transport related to a car-wrapping job. Their owner turned them over at about 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 15 from the 4200 block of North Meridian Avenue in Miami Beach. They never arrived at the shop.
A tweet from X.
Cops pinged the Ferrari via GPS shortly after midnight on December 16, finding it parked near Southwest 2nd Avenue and 17th Street. Officers watched Prendergast hop in and drive away. They tried a simple traffic stop. He bolted instead, turning it into a high-speed dash. The chase did not last long. Prendergast clipped a Miami police cruiser, lost control, and plowed into a utility pole near Southwest 2nd Avenue and 12th Street. The hit snapped the pole, fried the transformer in a burst of flames and debris, and cut power to more than a dozen nearby buildings. Florida Power & Light crews rushed in for fixes.
Prendergast ditched the mangled Ferrari now likely totaled with a wooden beam speared through the driver’s window and ran on foot. He tried hiding in a nearby apartment building, but surveillance cams gave him away. He gave up without a fight, got checked at Jackson Memorial Hospital for a minor facial cut, and then headed to booking at Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. No cops or passersby got hurt.
Charges hit quick: grand theft auto for the steal, fleeing and eluding police for the run, reckless driving for the chaos, and leaving the scene of a crash with property damage. He showed up in Miami-Dade bond court on December 17, where a judge set bond at $5,650. He posted it and walked free pending trial. The Rolls-Royce turned up undamaged elsewhere in Miami-Dade County, but cops are digging if this ties to bigger theft crews.
The whole mess blew up online thanks to a 27-second clip circulating on X. Shot from what looks like police dashcam or pursuit cams, it shows the red Ferrari weaving wildly through night streets. No sound, just raw visuals: the swerve, the cruiser hit, the pole smash, and that massive spark show lighting up the block. It matches official police logs and court docs dead on no edits or fakes here.
This fits a tough trend in U.S. car crimes. While overall motor vehicle thefts dipped nationally in the first half of 2025 down about 23% from 2024 per the National Insurance Crime Bureau luxury SUVs like the Purosangue stay prime picks for pros. FBI stats show theft rates still 25% above 2019 levels in many cities, with rings shipping parts overseas. Miami Beach alone nabbed over $5 million in hot exotics this year, nailing 27 suspects.
Chases like this highlight dangers in packed urban spots. One wrong turn risks lives, property, and blackouts in neighborhoods full of folks out late. It’s why this clip spread fast raw action mixed with relief no one got seriously banged up. Police probe if transport scams played a role, but for now, it’s a stark reminder: luxury wheels draw trouble, and pursuits can turn deadly quick.
