Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Mario Meshay Gould, Jr., 33, was arrested last night after allegedly fleeing from a traffic stop; he also had active warrants for failure to appear in a 2021 case and for allegedly pointing a gun at his ex-girlfriend and their child in March 2023.

At about 10:26 p.m. last night, law enforcement officers attempted a traffic stop on a black BMW with a tag that was not assigned to the BMW; the vehicle fled several marked patrol vehicles, and the pursuit was terminated. The vehicle was last seen driving northbound on NE 10th Street and backing into a home in the 1000 block of NE 8th Avenue. An Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy reportedly saw Gould get out of the BMW, walk into the home, and come back outside with a dog. A deputy made contact with Gould at the intersection of NE 10th Street and NE 7th Place and arrested him for fleeing and on his two active warrants.

A search incident to arrest reportedly produced 3.7 grams of a substance that tested positive for cocaine. A query on the BMW’s VIN reportedly found that the vehicle is unregistered; the tag was assigned to a Toyota sedan. Gould’s driver’s license is reportedly suspended.

Gould has been charged with cocaine possession, failure to register a motor vehicle, having the wrong tag on a vehicle, and fleeing law enforcement with lights and sirens active.

Gould is on pre-trial release for driving with a suspended license and fleeing with lights and sirens active on October 31, 2021. He posted bail in that case but failed to appear at a hearing in the case, resulting in a warrant that was issued on May 17, 2022.

A warrant was also issued on July 17, 2023, after formal charges of two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon were filed. That case arose from a March 2023 incident in which Gould allegedly pointed a pistol at three victims, including his ex-girlfriend and their child, before driving away.

As of his last arrest in 2021, Gould had six felony convictions and 10 misdemeanor convictions. He has served two state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2017. Gould is being held on $50,000 bail in the 2021 case and $275,000 bail in the 2023 case. Judge Lorelie Brannan set bail at $87,000 on the new charges.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.