They tried to run, hit a cop car and then got busted with a lot of drugs, cops say

After a brief car chase and backing into a Manatee County Sheriff’s patrol car while trying to get away, one of the suspects explained he ran because he, “had a little weed,” on him.

It turned out to be a lot more than a little weed. Deputies say they also found crack cocaine and the fentanyl in the car.

According to a sheriff’s office probable cause affidavit, Christopher Wayne Jackson, 23, and Demetrius Lawson, 21, face felony charges of possession with intent to sell and Lawson faces felony aggravated fleeing with injury or damage and tampering with physical evidence.

Just after 11 p.m. on June 8, a deputy saw a vehicle with expired tags and after running a check, determined the tags belonged to a different vehicle. The deputy attempted to initiate a traffic stop at 15th Street East and U.S. 301, at which time the vehicle swerved across two lanes and accelerated, “at a high rate of speed,” according to the report.

The suspects fled into a nearby lumber yard with no exit point. The deputy pulled in behind the suspects with his gun drawn, ordering the suspects out of the vehicle. They backed into the deputy’s patrol vehicle causing damage and attempted to flee again.

Trapped inside the business, the deputy followed on foot, repeating demands to stop. With nowhere to go, the suspects did stop, with Jackson complying. Lawson remained in the vehicle for a short time and appeared to be rummaging through the vehicle.

After securing the two suspects, deputies found a small amount of marijuana inside the vehicle and Lawson had a couple of grams of marijuana on his person, according to the report. Cocaine, crack cocaine, and fentanyl were discovered in the back seat.

Deputies say they found a backpack inside the trunk of the vehicle containing more than 31 grams of marijuana and Jackson was found to have $435 in a black leather satchel strapped across his chest.

Jackson declined to speak to deputies and Lawson told deputies that he had just bought the vehicle and said the tag is off his old car. He denied knowledge of any of the narcotics found.

Both men were jailed on $7,500 bond. Lawson has posted bail and Jackson remained in custody.