A man wanted on felony battery and robbery charges is spending his 37th birthday in the Alachua County Jail after he is accused of leading deputies and police on an impromptu, high-speed tour of west Gainesville early Monday, court records show.
Responding to an anonymous tip, Gainesville police officers attempted to stop a silver Dodge Charger driven by Roderick Rayshard Mabry, 37, of Gainesville at a pharmacy on Southwest 13th Street about 1:30 a.m. on Monday, according to a police report.
While police didn’t explain the nature of the tip, police said Mabry’s license was suspended last year for fleeing a traffic stop.
Gainesville police officers unsuccessfully attempted to stop Mabry twice and requested assistance from Alachua County sheriff’s deputies.
When deputies tried a third time to stop Mabry on the other side of town, Mabry raced south towards Archer Road at speeds in excess of 90 miles per hour, court records said. Deputies said they broke off the chase because of the unsafe speeds.
A short time later, Mabry was spotted again driving north on Southwest 13th Street. Mabry turned left onto West University Avenue where sheriff’s deputies successfully deployed a spike strip in the midtown area.
In spite of a flat tire, deputies continued a low-speed pursuit before ending the chase when they deliberately crashed into Mabry’s vehicle in the Porters neighborhood.
Mabry told an officer he knew he was being asked to stop but didn’t pull over because he was scared, the arrest report said.
After his arrest, Mabry was transported to a medical facility. While using the bathroom, police said he removed 119 grams of a white rock-like substance concealed between his buttocks and attempted to flush the contraband down the toilet. Officers were able to retrieve the drugs, which later tested positive for bath salts.
Mabry has 15 felony convictions including nine stemming from drug charges, according to court records. Since 2006, Mabry has been incarcerated on four occasions and was last released in November 2021, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
At a first appearance hearing Monday morning, Alachua County Circuit Judge William R. Slaughter III ordered Mabry held without bond until Mabry was no longer intoxicated.
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