Broken light got teen stopped, but what was in car put him in jail, SC cops say
A South Carolina teenager was recently arrested when he was pulled over for a traffic violation and was discovered to be in possession of guns — including two machine guns — and drugs, according to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
Additionally, an arrest warrant on an aggravated breach of peace charge had been issued just two days before 19-year-old Sumter resident Mikeveione Levontae Dennis was taken into custody at the traffic stop, the sheriff’s office said Monday night in a news release.
At about 10:30 p.m. on June 27, a deputy was patrolling Boulevard Road and saw a vehicle with a broken light, according to the release. After making the traffic stop, the deputy identified the driver as Dennis, who had an active arrest warrant in Sumter County on the breach of peace charge, the sheriff’s office said.
Dennis was detained, and when deputies searched the vehicle where they found an AR-style rifle and a pistol, according to the release. Both weapons were determined to be machine guns, as they had been modified to fire fully automatic, the sheriff’s office said.
The teen was also found to be in possession of a controlled substance, according to the release.
Dennis was charged with two counts of possession of a machine gun along with single counts of unlawful possession of a pistol, possession of a stolen handgun and possession of a controlled substance, the sheriff’s office said. He was also taken into custody on the outstanding arrest warrant that was issued June 25, according to the release.
Dennis was taken to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center, where his bond was set at $75,000 on the combined charges, the sheriff’s office said. Dennis was released after his bond was posted Sunday, Sumter County court records show.
Despite the arrest, the sheriff’s office said it’s continuing to investigate the case.
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