A Foley man has been sentenced to eight years in prison after leading law enforcement on a high-speed chase while illegally possessing a firearm. Jabari Maliek Stots, 28, was convicted for possessing a firearm as a felon and fleeing Baldwin County Sheriff’s deputies in a stolen vehicle.
Court records state that on November 19, 2024, Stots drove at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour through residential areas in Foley, ignoring stop signs and traffic lights and narrowly avoiding other vehicles. Deputies immobilized the stolen vehicle using a “pit” maneuver. Stots fled on foot carrying a pistol. A deputy fired at him after seeing him turn toward a K-9 officer with the weapon; Stots was not hit.
Stots continued to evade arrest through standing rainwater before being apprehended by the K-9 unit. He resisted arrest but was eventually taken into custody and treated for injuries caused by the dog.
Deputies found methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in the stolen car. A diver later recovered the .22 caliber pistol from the water where Stots had thrown it during his escape attempt. Recorded jail calls revealed that Stots admitted to possessing and discarding the weapon. At the time of this incident, he had prior felony convictions for breaking and entering a motor vehicle, burglary, and aggravated cruelty to animals, which prohibited him from legally owning firearms under federal law.
In addition to his 96-month sentence, United States District Judge Terry F. Moorer ordered Stots to serve three years of supervised release with mandatory drug testing and mental health treatment upon completion of his prison term. The court also imposed $100 in special assessments and ordered forfeiture of Stots’s pistol.
U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama stated: “U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives worked with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office on this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Roller prosecuted on behalf of the government.
This prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative led by the Department of Justice aiming to combat illegal immigration, dismantle cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and address violent crime through collaboration between programs such as Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
