ORLANDO, Fla. — Police arrested four men Wednesday, including one for allegedly dragging an Orlando police officer down a downtown road. The officer said he was grabbed by the driver of the car on Central Avenue, who then sped off.
Officers think the suspects may be behind other crimes, because of what they found in one of the men's pocket; police found a wad of cash covered in ink from a dye pack, a sign the money could have been part of a bank robbery.
An Orlando police officer on a stop downtown smelled marijuana coming from another car. Little did he know, the four suspects in the car were about take him on a violent ride.
When the suspects denied having marijuana, the officer approached and placed his hand on the door frame. A moment later, the driver grabbed the officer's hand, punched the gas and dragged the officer through the intersection.
The officer clutched the door to keep from getting pulled under the car and run-over.
"That's what criminals do. They don't care about citizens and they definitely don't care about police," Sgt. Barbara Jones of the Orlando Police Department said.
The officer eventually fell off the vehicle.
Nearby officers spotted the black Ford Focus driving at a high rate of speed on West Washington Street. Police eventually found the vehicle stopped on North Orange Blossom Trail. The men were all still inside the vehicle. Officers found marijuana and a handgun inside the vehicle and the four men were arrested.
The driver, 24-year-old Lawrence Boyd, was charged with attempted murder. Boyd also had $1,200 in cash covered in ink from a dye pack. Orlando police notified other agencies working recent bank robberies.
"All those signs, they were involved in something else, we can disseminate that," Jones said.
A surveillance camera captured a Wachovia Bank robbery in progress in South Orange County earlier this month, where gunmen forced a pregnant woman to the ground (surveillance pics) . A day later, four men stormed into the Fifth-Third Bank in Ocoee; one had a shot gun pointed in the lobby and another jumped the counter. In both cases, they took off with cash.
WFTV asked if Boyd's arrest could be the key to solving the other violent crimes. Neither agency will confirm whether they are looking at connecting the bank robberies to this case.
The officer dragged had some minor injuries and scratches, but police said, if he had slipped under the car, he could have been killed, which is why Boyd is charged with attempted murder.
The other three men, Adrian Holmes, Kevin Ford, and Quentin Aleem, were charged with possession of marijuana.
Previous Stories: July 9, 2010: Four Masked, Armed Men Rob Ocoee Bank July 8, 2010: Crooks Use Pregnant Worker As Tool In Robbery
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