A man was pulled over on a Florida highway (in other words, a Florida man) with “missiles” mounted on his truck, prompting a multi-agency bomb squad response.
The missiles located in a truck’s bed on a metal rack led to “multiple calls from Tampa Bay, Florida drivers on Interstate 4,” according to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP).
“FloridaMan A.K.A. RocketMan was intercepted by FHP State Troopers this afternoon on SR-39 near Plant City,” Florida Highway Patrol wrote on Instagram.
It wasn’t just Florida Highway Patrol troopers who responded to the numerous missile sightings. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Plant City Police Department, and the Plant City Fire Department were also involved. The agencies even set up an emergency perimeter until the bomb squad arrived.
The driver, Michael Nipper, told law enforcement that he had purchased the missiles online to display at an event. It was eventually determined by the bomb squad that the missiles were, in fact, “plastic devices” that are indeed used for shows and events.
“All was determined safe with a strong suggestion on how better to transport the articles!” FHP wrote, adding, “Never A Dull Moment in Tampa.”
Social media users had a field day making Florida Man and missile jokes
There was some humorous disagreement among social media users over whether police should have even stopped the Florida man’s truck. Perhaps surprisingly (or perhaps not), multiple people actually advised other drivers to just “mind their own business.”
“God forbid a man has hobbies,” read one comment.
“I thought this was America,” another person commented.
“Nobody tailgating him…” observed another commenter.
“I’m genuinely curious, what was the probable cause to make a traffic stop on him?” another person asked. “Does possessing rockets in the bed of his truck constitute reasonable articulable suspicion of a crime?”