Police: suspects raced with kids in car

Tampa - The ride down the Courtney Campbell Causeway for James Maymi and Virgen Lopez ended with a trip to jail.

Tampa Police spokesperson Andrea Davis says over the holiday weekend 29-year-old Maymi and 23-year-old Lopez were racing down the causeway with toddlers in their cars.

“They were going speeds from 90 up to 100 mph so not only were they putting their lives and other people’s lives at risk they were putting two children’s lives at risk,” said Davis.

No one takes the reckless act of illegal street racing more personally than Carlos Bombino.

His 16-year-old daughter Lucy was killed two years ago after police say she was struck and killed by a speeding motorcyclist on the Courtney Campbell.

“It’s nothing anybody wants to go thru believe me.” said Bombino.

Since Lucy’s death police have spent countless weekends cracking down on illegal street racing on the bridge, but some are still not getting the message.

Lucy’s brother Bobby says he misses his big sister everyday.

A garden in front of the family home keeps her memory alive.

“It’s still hard but we are getting thru it.” said Bombino.

Meanwhile, after being pulled over a police report shows one of the alleged racers told the officer “sorry, I know what I did was wrong”.

Lopez and Maymi were taken to the Hillsborough County jail and are charged with racing on highways.

Maymi was also charged with driving without a license, and driving an unregistered vehicle.