An 18-year-old man was seriously injured in Ocala after a truck struck him while he sat in the middle of a roadway getting a haircut, according to the Ocala Police Department. Police say the stunt was meant to follow a viral TikTok trend.
Investigators say three men set up a chair taken from a nearby Raising Cane's in the concrete median of State Road 200. Their goal was to record a video for social media, according to police.
The department identified the men by their roles. Ruben Rodriguez, 18, sat in the chair. Andrew Costa-De Souza, 19, cut his hair, and Christopher Coleman, 20, filmed the scene.
Police said a traffic crash nearby caused a Chevrolet 3500 pickup truck to swerve toward the median. Officers stated that Coleman and Costa-De Souza managed to run out of the way. Rodriguez, however, was hit from behind because his back was turned to traffic.
All three men were later arrested on charges of unlawful assembly and dangerous use of public rights of way. Authorities say Costa-De Souza was taken into custody at Orlando International Airport after returning from traveling abroad, and he was then transported to the Marion County Jail.
The Ocala Police Department used the case to warn the public about the risks of social media stunts staged on active roads. Police said such acts put both the participants and drivers in immediate danger, and that they will lead to criminal charges.
The details in this report come from the Ocala Police Department, which outlined the arrests and the circumstances of the incident in an arrest affidavit.
