A man was sentenced June 30 to 57 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
According to court documents, on May 8, 2021, Hamilton County Sheriff’s deputies attempted to stop Brenton Preston, 25, after they observed him driving 80 mph in a 55-mph zone in Westfield. According to a press release from the U.S. Dept. of Justice, Preston fled from the deputies and led them on a high-speed chase reaching speeds of approximately 100 mph, until Preston lost control of his car and crashed into a field. Preston continued to flee on foot but was eventually apprehended. Deputies arrested Preston, who appeared to be intoxicated, and recovered a loaded handgun and a liquor bottle from the front passenger floorboard of the car. Preston’s DNA was later found on the firearm.
Evidence presented at sentencing showed that Preston was on probation for a prior armed robbery conviction at the time of this incident and that he had recently been arrested in Marion County for illegally possessing another firearm and firing shots inside a girlfriend’s home. Preston was on pretrial supervision with GPS monitoring in the Marion County case at the time of the high-speed chase and his arrest.
The Indiana Crime Guns Task Force investigated the case. The Fishers Police Dept., the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives provided assistance. U.S. District Judge James R. Sweeney imposed the sentence following Preston’s guilty plea. As part of the sentence, Sweeney ordered Preston be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for three years following his release from prison.
The Indiana Crime Guns Task Force is a partnership of law enforcement officers and analysts from several central Indiana law enforcement agencies in Boone, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Marion, Morgan, Johnson, and Shelby counties. In cooperation with state, local and federal partners, ICGTF collaborates to address violent crime through a comprehensive strategy including innovative approaches to locating suspects and evidence related to violent crimes and illegal possession of firearms.
