Prior Felon Sentenced to Nine Years in Federal Prison After Stealing Car and Fleeing Police

INDIANAPOLIS— Brandon Lee, 35, of Indianapolis, has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. In July of 2024, a federal jury found Lee guilty of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon following a two-day trial.

According to court documents, on April 26, 2023, at approximately 10:00 pm, Lee stole a 2014 gray Honda Accord that was parked near a food truck, when the car’s owner was busy ordering food. Lee fled 45 minutes to Cumberland, Indiana. 

At approximately 10:55 pm, officers with the Cumberland Police Department located the stolen Honda in an apartment complex parking lot with Lee standing next to it. When Lee saw the officers approaching him, he fired a shot from a semiautomatic pistol into the air and then fled on foot.

Following a brief chase through a nearby neighborhood, Lee attempted to jump a wooden privacy fence and was then taken into custody. During a search of his person incident to arrest, officers located the keys to the stolen Honda Accord in his front pants pocket.

Officers found Lee’s gun the next day in the bed of a pickup truck that had been parked in the apartment complex parking lot the night before. DNA analysis linked Lee to that firearm.

Lee has been a convicted felon since 2010, amassing convictions for illegally possessing a firearm, theft and battery, and resisting law enforcement. These previous felony convictions prohibit Lee from ever legally possessing a firearm again.

“This defendant’s reckless use of a firearm endangered officers and innocent bystanders in their own backyards. I hope this sentence will bring comfort to our citizens and those impacted knowing that Mr. Lee is behind bars and not free to terrorize others,” said John E. Childress, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “The federal prison sentence imposed here demonstrates that there is no place in society for these violent crimes and that we are deeply committed to working closely with our federal, state and local partners to reduce gun violence in Indianapolis.”

“This sentence underscores the serious consequences for those who engage in violent and dangerous behavior that puts the community at risk,” said FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Herbert J. Stapleton. “The FBI, along with our law enforcement partners, is committed to ensuring those who jeopardize public safety will be held accountable.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigations, IMPD, and Cumberland Police Department investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Chief Judge Tanya Walton Pratt.

Acting U.S. Attorney Childress thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelsey L. Massa and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy C. Fugate, who prosecuted this case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

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