Watch Driver Fleeing FL Traffic Stop, Dragging Officer 150 Feet

BRADENTON, FL — A Bradenton police officer is recovering after being dragged by a car fleeing a Tuesday night traffic stop. (Watch police bodycam footage of the officer being dragged below.)

Officer Shane Sharp first tried to pull over the car in the 1200 block of Martin Luther King Avenue E. just after 11:30 p.m. after observing a violation, according to a Bradenton Police Department news release.

Sharp followed the car for several blocks until the driver, later identified as 19-year-old Lenny Macias-Rangel, pulled over.

Concerned that Macias-Rangel might flee from the traffic stop, the officer asked him 12 times to turn off the car, police said.

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When the driver refused, Sharp opened the driver’s side door and reached to shift the car into park. Macias-Rangel immediately put the car into drive.

As Sharp struggled with the driver, another officer ran over to help, but the driver sped off, pinning Sharp’s torso against the dashboard. The car traveled about 150 feet, dragging the officer along the way before crashing into a pole, police said.

Macias-Rangel resisted arrest and hit several officers. He was evaluated for injuries and received medical clearance for transport to the Manatee County jail.

Sharp was rushed to the hospital in a patrol vehicle. He sustained a concussion, arm injuries, including a separated shoulder, and minor leg injuries.

He was released from the hospital Wednesday morning and is recovering at home.

Crime Reduction Team detectives searched the car and found more than a kilogram of marijuana and 62 THC vape cartridges.

Macias-Rangel was charged with two counts of aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer, four counts of battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer with violence, fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer, and possession with intent to sell, manufacture, or deliver a controlled substance.

Watch a video of the officer being dragged: