JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The man in the viral September 2023 Jacksonville arrest video along with Le'Keian Woods was sentenced to three years in Duval County court Friday afternoon.
Vontez Wright, 38, was sentenced on two separate cases by Judge Mark Borello— the first being the one which he and Woods were a part of, and the other, an incident taking place three weeks after the arrest of Woods went viral.
Wright was given credit for 287 days in jail for the 3-year sentence, which is for a trafficking in cocaine charge. He also was adjudicated guilty on a possession of cocaine charge and received a 287-day sentence with credit for 287 days served.
Woods' arrest went viral after a video of it was recorded by a bystander named Ruby Anderson. The video showed Woods being struck a total of 17 times. His mugshot subsequently gained significant attention after it showed what appeared to be a badly beaten face with his eyes swollen shut.
Wright pleaded guilty on June 5 to trafficking cocaine and fentanyl, which was later reduced to a possession of controlled substance charge, court records show.
In the first incident with Woods, the two were pulled over on Sept. 29, 2023 after the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Gang Unit conducted surveillance in the BP gas station parking lot located at 6680 Powers Ave.
Wright's arrest report from the incident states that the area is a "known gang area for the gang '3,' a documented criminal organization within Jacksonville."
The report notes that detectives spotted Woods conducting what appeared to be "a drug transaction," as he was seen with what "appeared to be a handgun in the pocket," walking back and forth between two Dodge vehicles and counting money.
After Wright and Woods left the gas station, with Wright as the driver of a Dodge Ram and Woods as the passenger, JSO said detectives followed the truck in their unmarked police vehicles down Toledo Road toward Old Kings Road South.
Police then attempted to pull them over at that location, according to the report, but the truck "did not come to a stop ... as if the occupants were looking for a place to run from the vehicle." The truck eventually stopped at a dead end in the driveway of an apartment complex on Kensington Gardens Lane.
After detectives instructed both Wright and Woods to exit the vehicle, a search of the vehicle was done, to which then Woods fled a short time later.
The search turned up various drugs including marijuana, "M523" pills, cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl, according to the report.
Wright was arrested on the following charges:
- Operating vehicle while driver's license revoked for habitual traffic offender
- Possession of marijuana
- Driver not wearing seatbelt
- Improper sun screening materials installed
One of the officers in Woods' arrest, Josue Garriga, 34, was arrested on charges of sex crimes involving a minor. He pleaded guilty in July.
Click here to find out what happened at the end of Woods' case.
The second incident Wright was sentenced for on Friday also includes a drug charge after a traffic arrest.
Editor's note: Wright bonded out on charges from the September incident the day after it happened, court records show.
On Oct. 20, 2023 at 7:07 p.m., Wright and another man identified as 33-year-old Anthony Holloway were pulled over after they "failed to make a complete stop at the stop sign" in the 3300 block of Wilson Street, according to his arrest report.
"While speaking with the occupants I detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle," the report states.
Despite Wright telling the officer, "I don't smoke," he was arrested after the officer found two baggies of a "glass/rock like substance" and one baggie of an "unknown white powdery substance" during a pat down.
The glass-like substance tested positive for amphetamines/methamphetamines, the report states, while the white powdery substance tested positive for fentanyl.
Wright was then taken into custody.
He was sentenced at 2 p.m.
