![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Screenshot-2026-02-23T223044.602.webp?resize=235%2C286&ssl=1\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nAround 5:20 p.m., a Polk County deputy spotted a black Suzuki motorcycle cruising without a license plate. When the deputy tried to initiate a traffic stop, the rider didn\u2019t pull over; instead, he twisted the throttle and sped away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following standard safety protocols, the deputy chose not to engage in a high-speed chase. Instead, he stayed on the radio, alerting nearby units about the fleeing biker\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It wasn\u2019t long before another deputy caught sight of the Suzuki\u2014this time, the rider was navigating the motorcycle down a sidewalk. As the second deputy flipped on his emergency lights to block the path, the rider dropped the bike on its side and took off running.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The foot pursuit was brief. The deputy identified the man as 53-year-old Von Eric Persinger of Bartow. Despite orders to halt, Persinger continued to flee until the deputy physically intercepted him and placed him in handcuffs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While being detained, Persinger reportedly volunteered a piece of information investigators hadn\u2019t even asked for yet: he admitted he ran because the motorcycle was stolen. A quick check of the vehicle\u2019s identification confirmed his statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Suzuki had been reported stolen to the Lakeland Police Department late last year. Further inspection of the bike revealed an altered VIN, and a search turned up methamphetamine, marijuana, and various drug-related paraphernalia. Investigators also noted that Persinger was allegedly attempting to tamper with evidence during the encounter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Persinger was transported to the Sheriff\u2019s Jail. His charges include grand theft auto, dealing in stolen property, fleeing to elude, and possession of a motor vehicle with an altered VIN. He also faces multiple drug possession counts, resisting an officer without violence, and driving with a revoked license as a third-time offender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As for the Suzuki, the investigation ended with a bit of good news for the original owner. After months of being missing, the motorcycle was processed and returned to its rightful home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A PCSO patrol in Wahneta took an unexpected turn, when a deputy\u2019s attempt to pull over a motorcycle sparked a chain of events revealing a laundry list of alleged crimes.… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63042,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"23","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvaTAud3AuY29tXC9sYWtlbGFuZGdhemV0dGUuaW5mb1wvbmV3c1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyNlwvMDJcL1NjcmVlbnNob3QtMjAyNi0wMi0yM1QyMjMwNDQuNjAyLndlYnA_Zml0PTIzNSUyQzI4NiZzc2w9MSIsInR4dCI6IlN0b2xlbiBMYWtlbGFuZCBTdXp1a2kgRm91bmQgQWZ0ZXIgV2FobmV0YSBUcmFmZmljIFN0b3AgTGVhZHMgVG8gQXJyZXN0IiwidGVtcGxhdGUiOiJoaWdod2F5IiwiZm9udCI6IiIsImJsb2dfaWQiOjE2MzA0MDY2MX0.VZKZl1vyoYc8EcbV3ml5Ini5iNHi6iabVeQww1teXBgMQ"},"version":2,"attached_media":[{"id":63042,"url":"http:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Screenshot-2026-02-23T223044.602.webp","type":"image\/png"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[23],"tags":[13809],"class_list":["post-63041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sheriffs-corner","tag-stolen-lakeland-suzuki-found-after-wahneta-traffic-stop-leads-to-arrest"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63041"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63041\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63043,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63041\/revisions\/63043"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63042"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}