A Leesburg police officer used his department service pistol to order a man out of a pickup in the parking lot of the Walmart store.
The officer was on patrol early Saturday night when he noticed a white pickup truck with a heavily damaged license plate. The officer began following the truck and turned on his emergency lights near the intersection of Thomas Avenue and Shirly’s Way. The truck ignored the officer’s emergency lights and continued to drive at normal traffic speeds until it came to a red light at South Dixie Highway. At that point the officer activated his siren, according to the arrest report.
The officer could see the driver, later identified as 33-year-old Tyler Mark Pair of Lady Lake, look back at the officer as he turned onto South Dixie Avenue. Pair continued onto Citrus Boulevard before pulling into the Walmart parking lot. Pair continued to drive at a slow speed in the parking lot. The officer yelled at Pair telling him to stop the truck.
When Pair pulled into a parking space, the officer exited his patrol car and Pair started to slowly drive away. The officer drew his service weapon and ordered Pair to stop the truck and put his hands on the wheel where the officer could see them. The Alabama native followed the officer’s directions.
After determining Pair’s identity, a records check showed his license had been revoked as he was a habitual traffic offender with four previous driving while license suspended convictions. A search revealed that Pair was in possession of marijuana, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
After processing at the Leesburg Police Department he was taken to the Lake County Jail. He was booked without bond due to a probation violation.
