Deputies: Felon caught with loaded rifle, clown mask
LEESBURG, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - A Lake County man is back behind bars after deputies said they found a loaded rifle and a clown mask in his car when he tried to flee a traffic stop.
Lloyd Carter, 26, of Mount Dora, is no stranger to the law. Lake County Spokesman Fred Jones says he's a convicted felon with 17 different arrests and another arrest Sunday making 18.
Sgt. Jones says, "It seems as though he has graduated to the big time now committing felonies."
According to Sgt. Jones and Carter's arrest affidavit, at a Leesburg intersection, Carter rolled thru the stop sign while a deputy was behind him. Deputies say Carter tried to elude the officer but instead crashed right into a chain linked fence. Deputies say Carter then tried to escape on foot, but a K-9 unit caught him. Officers then discovered two items of big concern.
Sgt. Jones says, "The assault rifle was in his possession. They also found a clown mask in the seat, which leads us to believe that maybe he was going to commit a crime at the time he was stopped."
Deputies say the rifle was loaded -- one round in the chamber and fifteen in the clip. The clown mask was next to him in the front passenger seat.
Jones says, "Carter wouldn't comment on it, but anytime you add those two together, a weapon like that and a mask, it appears as though maybe he was going to commit a crime."
Sgt. Jones says Carter also altered the serial number on the loaded rifle, so Carter faces that charge along with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, fleeing and eluding, and driving with a revoked license.
At the time this article was published, Carter was still being held on a $42,000 bond.