AUBURNDALE, Fla. — Traffic Homicide detectives with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office are investigating a fatal single-vehicle crash that occurred early Sunday morning near Winter Haven.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, first responders were dispatched at approximately 3:02 a.m. on May 31, 2026, to a crash on Thornhill Road just north of Sugar Creek Road.
When deputies and emergency personnel arrived, they discovered the driver deceased inside the vehicle.
The victim was identified as a 33-year-old man from Auburndale.
The preliminary investigation indicates the man was driving a gray Toyota Corolla southbound on Thornhill Road when he failed to negotiate a curve. The vehicle left the roadway and struck a large tree on the driver’s side.
Investigators said the driver was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
Thornhill Road remained closed for approximately three hours while members of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Homicide Unit processed the scene and conducted their investigation.
The crash remains under investigation.
