Tallahassee Man Found Guilty on Weapon, Drug Charges

A Tallahassee man was recently found guilty on weapon and drug charges. The incident that resulted in his arrest – which began near Kissimmee Street – is detailed below.

The narrative was provided by the the State Attorney’s Office.

—

Officer Sheats was working road patrol in the early morning of September 25, 2022. He spotted a vehicle speeding on Kissimmee Street and proceeded to pull him over. Prior to doing so, Officer Sheats ran the tag of the car. Fredrick Frazier was the only registered owner and had a suspended license. After Frazier (the driver) stopped, Sheats noticed Frazier was staring at him through the rear mirror. Sensing something was wrong, Sheats called for back-up. Before back-up could arrive, Frazier floored it, speeding down Kissimmee Street. Sheats pursued Frazier, who by this time had turned off the headlights of his truck. Frazier ran over the roundabout on Kissimmee and eventually turned right on Lake Bradford Drive, where he continued to show an absolute disregard for human life, where civilian vehicles and pedestrians were on or near the road.

Upon reaching FAMU Way, Frazier turned right and began traveling eastbound in the westbound lane – still with his headlights off in a futile attempt to evade being followed. At this time other officers joined in the pursuit and attempted to stop Frazier’s dangerous behavior. Officers Sheats, Rotem, and Rhody were following the vehicle with lights and sirens on. Frazier was blocked by an incoming pedestrian vehicle. He stopped and threw the truck in reverse, almost striking multiple police vehicles. Frazier continued to drive westbound in reverse with his headlights still off. He ran the red light on Lake Bradford Drive, and came to a stop at Tony’s Market, just south of the intersection. The defendant refused to comply with orders to stop and ran out of the car while it was still moving in reverse.

Officers Sheats, Cockerham, and Rhody pursued the now on-foot Frazier. Frazier jumped over a 6 foot fence and attempted to dump a black satchel bag in the field. Sheats eventually apprehended Frazier. A loaded firearm was found concealed in his jacket pocket. Frazier acknowledged the presence of the firearm after initially denying it.

Officer Sheats inventoried the black satchel bag and found a large quantity of synthetic cathinones, empty baggies, a scale, and an air-tight plastic container. In addition to the contents in the black bag, Officer Rotem and Rhody located additional drugs and drug dealing paraphernalia – namely a substance commonly used as a cutting agent for drug dealers to dilute their product, thereby stretching their drug dollar. The Defendant was charged with the above referenced charges.

At trial, the Defendant absented himself and the case proceeded to trial without him. The state’s witnesses provided an excellent rendition of the facts and evidence collected. Officer Sheats was exceptionally effective with his testimony, explaining how the paraphernalia, cash, drug weight, and other factors would support Frazier being a street-level drug dealer rather than a personal user. The jury returned verdicts of Guilty as charged on all counts, and found the Defendant had actual possession of the firearm.

—