No bond for vehicular homicide suspect after 2 dead in Florida crash

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. - A Florida man accused of killing two brothers in a high-speed crash was denied bond on Friday after appearing before a Seminole County judge. 

Marquaious Tayvon Wheaton, 26, is facing multiple felony charges after authorities say he evaded a traffic stop, accelerated to speeds exceeding 100 mph and slammed into an oncoming vehicle.

Brothers Christopher Marier, 42, and Tyler M. Marier, 40, died at the scene of the crash. Wheaton, who was on felony probation at the time, was treated at a local hospital before being booked into the Seminole County Jail. 

What we know:

Wheaton appeared in court on July 10 – three days after a deadly crash on U.S. Highway 17-92 in Casselberry. Wheaton was taken into custody at the hospital after authorities pulled his body from his overturned vehicle as it burst into flames, released footage from the Seminole County Sheriff's Office shows. 

Read more: Former cop, University of Central Florida professor killed in crash

Wheaton is accused of several felonies by the Seminole County Sheriff's Office and the Casselberry Police Department. He was denied bond for all the charges, which include: 

• Two counts of vehicular homicide - negligent manslaughter
• Two counts of felony murder
• Fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer
• Excessive speeding - over 100 mph
• Multiple infractions including improper left turn, following too closely, failure to drive on the right half of the road, failure to obey a traffic signal and cutting off a vehicle.

The backstory:

Around 11:50 a.m., July 7, the Seminole County Sheriff's Office attempted to pull Wheaton over at a traffic stop in Sanford, but he drove off. Wheaton was identified as a suspected fentanyl trafficker, the sheriff's office said. 

 According to Wheaton's criminal record, he was arrested in August 2023 by Winter Springs Police, who pulled him over for a motor vehicle violation. The report said a glass vial containing a yellow liquid – which tested presumptive positive for fentanyl – and several multicolored pills tested presumptive positive for MDMA. Plastic bags with marijuana were also found. 

Wheaton was arrested at this time on drug possession charges, but one month later, the state attorney’s office decided not to file charges against Wheaton in connection to this case. The state attorney’s office told FOX 35’s Marie Edinger that the evidence in the case was insufficient to prove the charge of crack cocaine possession to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. 

Wheaton's past convictions include robbery with a firearm and tampering with a witness in 2019 – in which he was sentenced to five years in the Department of Corrections and two years of probation. Records show Wheaton violated probation twice – in 2023 and 2024 – but the probation was reinstated without any changes to his sentence. 

Wheaton was also denied three months ago in his plea to be taken off GPS monitoring. The Florida DOC reports his supervision expires in 2029. 

What prompted the traffic stop? 

A sheriff's office report said Wheaton was observed on July 7 to have unlawful tint on his windows. Wheaton was known to the sheriff's office as someone with a criminal history, including trafficking over four grams of fentanyl. 

Wheaton was reported to be driving with a "complete disregard for the public's safety," recklessly, driving on the wrong side of the road and passing vehicles on the shoulder. 

At the intersection of U.S. Highway 17-92 and Sunnytown Road in Casselberry, traveling over 100 mph, Wheaton hit another vehicle, killing the Marier brothers inside, the report said. 

Wheaton was taken out of his wrecked vehicle, which had flipped upside down, and was taken into custody. 

What we don't know:

It's not known if any illegal substances were found in Wheaton's vehicle. 

Crime and Public SafetySeminole County News