A convicted felon was arrested early Monday morning after deputies found a loaded handgun in the glove box of a pickup truck during a traffic stop near State Road 44 and Interstate 75.
Thomas Logan Renckley, 38, of Jacksonville, was taken into custody shortly after 1 a.m. at the Pilot gas station in Wildwood.
According to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, a K-9 deputy initiated the stop after spotting a gray Toyota pickup truck hauling a trailer eastbound on State Road 44. The trailer was carrying a Chevrolet Malibu that lacked activated taillights.
As the truck pulled into the gas station, Renckley, who was riding in the front passenger seat, immediately exited the vehicle, left the door wide open and walked into the convenience store. He later returned to the scene carrying merchandise.
Meanwhile, a K-9 unit named Kruze conducted a free-air sniff of the pickup truck and alerted to the probable presence of narcotics. When a deputy informed the truck’s three occupants that the vehicle would be searched, Renckley spontaneously volunteered that there was an “item” in the glove box. He claimed the item did not belong to him but admitted he had seen it earlier in the day.
When deputies opened the glove box, they found a black .40-caliber Taurus handgun resting right on top of the compartment’s contents. The weapon did not have a case, but had a magazine inserted and one round in the chamber. Deputies also located a pellet gun in the trunk of the Malibu being towed.
A criminal history check by dispatch confirmed Renckley is a convicted felon in the state of Florida.
He was arrested on a felony charge of possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon. He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center on $20,000 bond.