Lonnie Washington Pleads Guilty and Is Sentenced for Federal Firearm Offense
Lonnie Washington admitted to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon before being sentenced to 70 months in federal prison.
3 reports on this incident · first at Aug 15, 2026, 1:27 p.m. ET
Earlier reports
Aug 15, 2026, 1:42 p.m. ET
Lonnie Washington Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal Prison for Illegal Firearm Possession
On August 14, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida announced that Lonnie Washington, 25, of Gainesville, was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge John L. Badalamenti. Washington pleaded guilty on April 28, 2026, to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
According to court records, Washington was a fugitive in May 2022 after using a vehicle to strike an occupied police car in Gainesville before fleeing on foot. On May 10, 2022, a law enforcement task force located Washington at the Poinciana home of Fruit Town Brims gang leader Micheal Hankerson. During a search, investigators found a CZ Scorpion Evo 3 semi-automatic firearm with a loaded 50-round drum magazine and an additional magazine loaded with 19 rounds of ammunition. Cellphone video recovered by the FBI showed Washington holding the firearm a week before his arrest.
Washington had prior felony convictions, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, which bar him from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law. Hankerson was previously convicted in 2022 of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and sentenced to six years in federal prison.
Aug 15, 2026, 1:27 p.m. ETFirst report
Lonnie Washington Sentenced to 70 Months for Federal Firearm Possession
According to official court records from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida released on August 14, 2026, 25-year-old Lonnie Washington of Gainesville has been sentenced to 70 months—five years and 10 months—in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. U.S. District Judge John L. Badalamenti imposed the sentence following Washington's guilty plea on April 28, 2026, in a case that remains open and developing. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced the sentencing.
Official documents show that in May 2022, Washington was a fugitive after using a vehicle to strike an occupied police car in Gainesville a month earlier and fleeing on foot. Investigators located Washington, a known member of the Fruit Town Brims gang, hiding at the Poinciana home of gang leader Micheal Hankerson. The FBI learned that while fleeing law enforcement, Washington posted on social media, "I’m finna go on a killing run." On May 10, 2022, a U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force, working with the FBI and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, entered the residence after Washington refused calls to voluntarily surrender.
During a search of the residence, law enforcement officers recovered a CZ Scorpion Evo 3 semi-automatic firearm, a loaded 50-round drum magazine, additional firearms, and another magazine loaded with 19 rounds of ammunition. A search warrant for Washington's cellphone uncovered a video recorded one week prior to his arrest showing him holding the CZ Scorpion Evo 3 firearm. Washington's prior felony convictions include aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Hankerson was also convicted in 2022 of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and sentenced to six years in federal prison.
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Revision history
- Version 115 Aug 2026, 17:42current
First published.
- Version 115 Aug 2026, 17:27current
First published.
- Version 115 Aug 2026, 17:48current
First published.
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