Bradenton man sentenced to prison on gun charge after police chase, prosecutors say
A judge sentenced a 26-year-old Bradenton man to federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced.
U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday sentenced Dovontate Wright to two years and six months in federal prison after he previously pleaded guilty in March, according to a news release.
Court records show Wright was already in prison for drug charges imposed in Manatee County in 2021.
Wright’s sentence will run consecutively to that sentence, which was five years and six months in prison, according to court records.
Prosecutors say Wright was in the front passenger seat of a silver Nissan Altima driving in the wrong direction on a one-way road when officers with the Sarasota Police Department stopped the vehicle.
Wright then fled on foot into a nearby auto parts store, according to a news release.
Bradenton man sentenced after police chase
Once inside the store, detectives say Wright ran toward the back and stumbled into a product bin as he attempted to pull a fully loaded black Smith and Wesson 40C pistol from his waistband.
After placing the gun into the product basket, detectives said he continued to run to the back wall of the building before an officer was able to take him into custody and recover the gun.
The gun was loaded with ammunition and there was one round in the chamber, according to arrest records.
During an interview, detectives say Wright admitted to having a firearm and told them he was a convicted felon.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Sarasota Police Department.
Wright previously served three years in a Florida prison for aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and grand theft of a motor vehicle, according to a news release.
Wright’s 2021 drug charges in Manatee County came after an undercover officer with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office said they purchased $50 of marijuana and another $50 of rock cocaine from him at a Circle K in Bradenton.
