A convicted felon was arrested with a loaded weapon after a traffic stop in The Villages.
Benjamin Michael Bariteau, 26, of Summerfield, had been driving a white four-door Cadillac at 7:45 p.m. Saturday on U.S. Hwy. 27/441 at Buenos Aires Boulevard when he was stopped for an illegal tint on the driver’s side window, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
Bariteau pulled the vehicle onto a median and fled on foot. With the help of a K-9, he was found hiding in a vacant field.
A Smith & Wesson automatic weapon was found tucked under the driver’s seat with a round in the chamber.
A check revealed Bariteau had been convicted in 2015 in Oklahoma of felony drug possession and escape after lawful arrest.
He was arrested on felony charges of possession of a concealed weapon and possession of a weapon/ammunition by a convicted felon.
He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center on $13,000 bond.
