Port Charlotte man arrested after body found at hotel near airport, Sarasota police say
An arrest was made in connection to the death of a man last Thursday in a north Sarasota hotel near the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, a Sarasota Police Department news release said Monday.
Brennan Wakey, 25, of Port Charlotte, was arrested on murder charges, the release said.
On Thursday, Sarasota police officers were called to the Hyatt Place, 950 University Parkway, where housekeeping staff found the body of an adult male, the release said.
Police said last week the death was suspicious, but cause of death had not yet been determined by the medical examiner’s office.
Because of Marsy’s Law, the Sarasota Police Department is withholding the victim’s name, but said in the news release that the victim and Wakey “had been involved in a romantic relationship.”
Police said the victim and an unknown man entered the hotel lobby after 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 8 and rented a room. Video surveillance showed the victim a short time later at a drive-thru, the release said.
After 2:30 a.m. Thursday video footage allegedly showed the victim, Wakey and the unknown man exiting a vehicle in the hotel parking lot. Video from about 30 minutes later showed Wakey, “leaving the building, walking at a fast pace while pulling a bag on wheels with a handgun tucked into his rear waistband,” the release said.
The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office arrested Wakey during a traffic stop around 4 a.m. Thursday. He’s being held at the Charlotte County jail without bond.
The case remains under investigation, and police ask anyone with information to call the Criminal Investigation Division at 941-263-6070 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers by calling 941-366-TIPS or online at www.sarasotacrimestoppers.com.
