Deputy with stun gun nabs bicyclist who said ‘he had just got ‘dope’ and chose not to stop’

OCALA, Fla. – A guy “riding a bicycle in and out of traffic,” causing everyone else to slow down, got the attention of a sheriff’s deputy on patrol.

The bike “had no lighting equipment attached, which was required during the nighttime hours,” the deputy in Florida reported, so he tried to conduct a traffic stop after 9 p.m. on Sept. 24.

That didn’t go as planned.

UPDATE: Jeremy LaMotte was sentenced on Oct. 25, 2024, and released from jail on Jan. 14, 2025. Click for details.

SEE ALSO: The e-bike he’s accused of stealing had an ‘I love peeing outside’ sticker on its frame

The deputy wrote he activated his “emergency red/blue lights and sirens; however, the defendant, who was later identified as Jeremy LaMotte, continued to ride away from me.

“At one point, the defendant yelled that he was stopping; however, did not. The defendant failed to stop and began to quickly accelerate away from me, and turned into the property of [address] and attempted to ride his bicycle in the woods, in an attempt to elude capture. 

“The defendant dismounted his bicycle and began to flee on foot. I gave chase while providing verbal commands, and I was able to engage the subject on foot, at which point I deployed my agency-issued electrostatic discharge device [like a Taser], which struck the defendant, at which point I was able to take him into police custody.

“Multiple Marion County units responded to assist with this incident, at which point the defendant recognized one, [a corporal].

“The defendant made a spontaneous statement that he had drugs in a bag that was in his possession during the time of the traffic stop.” 

Then, “I asked the defendant what his reasoning was for running and attempting to flee from me, at which point he stated he had just got “dope” and chose not to stop.

“The defendant stated he had a vile in the bag which had two separate baggies of drugs. The defendant stated one bag would have methamphetamine and the second bag would have fentanyl.”

Apparently he was right, but he left something out.

“[The corporal] and [another deputy] located the items inside of the defendant’s bag, in which the defendant had advised of, as well as a used needle.

“The drugs preemptively field-tested positive for fentanyl and methamphetamine, and the needle field-tested positive for methamphetamine,” they reported.

“The defendant was apologetic and did not further resist deputies.”

LaMotte, 39, was charged with possession of fentanyl, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and resisting without violence. 

He pleaded not guilty, and has been in jail since his arrest.