Tampa Bay Criminal Defense Lawyer - Chase and Shooting in St. Petersburg

By Nick Dorsten, Esq.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Two men wanted in a robbery and shooting last week were arrested quickly right after they led police on a high-speed chase.

Police say that the two men, 28, and , 24, tried to rob the victim, who was shot twice, police said. The victim was later listed in critical condition at Bayfront Medical Center.

Witnesses told police the robbers fled in a dark Nissan Altima and a car of that description was seen at 4:17 a.m., getting onto Interstate 275 in south St. Petersburg.

When officers tried to stop it, police said, the vehicle sped off, heading north on I-275, at speeds of up to 100 mph. As the Altima got off at 22 Avenue N, it crashed into a concrete median hard enough to disable it.

The two men inside got out and ran, (a fleeing and eluding).

A five-block perimeter was later set up as officers searched for the men, eventually closing the westbound lanes of 22nd Avenue N for about an hour, as reported byBay News 9.

The driver was arrested after a brief foot chase, but not before trying to punch the arresting officer (battery of a law enforcement).

The passenger slipped out of the area but was later tracked by a police dog and found hiding behind a fence in a yard. The police dog had bit the passenger in his lower left leg, it was reported.

Both men were in custody just before 5 a.m.

A 9 mm handgun was found on the driver's side floor of the Altima, police said.

The car is registered to a St. Petersburg woman whom police did not identify.

The two men denied any involvement in the robbery and shooting, police said.

The driver was charged with fleeing and eluding, being a felon in possession of a firearm, resisting a police officer with violence and marijuana possession.

The passenger, who already was wanted for failure to appear in court on an obstruction of justice charge, was charged with marijuana possession and resisting arrest without violence.

Records do show both men have a history of arrests in Pinellas County.

Have you or a loved one been arrested for a possession of marijuana or a child abuse? Then contact the St. Petersburg criminal defense attorneys of Blake & Dorsten, P.A. for a free consultation!

For more information, or to speak directly with experienced St. Petersburg criminal defense lawyers please contact BLAKE & DORSTEN, P.A. at 727.286.6141 or email the lawyers your questions at: info@blakedorstenlaw.com. We are located at 4707 140th Ave N, Suite 104 in Clearwater, across from the criminal courthouse in the airport business center, minutes from Tampa and St. Petersburg.