Man arrested after speeding around on ATV with toddler, promoting drag racing event set to block MRB traffic

2022-09-10 08:29:00 By : Ms. Chloe Zhou

BATON ROUGE - A man was arrested Saturday after police found him speeding on an ATV with his one-year-old son Friday afternoon. Officers later discovered he was allegedly promoting an off-road vehicle drag racing event that would block traffic on the Mississippi River Bridge on Saturday.

The Baton Rouge Police Department said Jorey Bryant, 26, was spotted driving an ATV on Saguaro Avenue near Florida Boulevard around 4:25 p.m. Friday.

Officers noticed a small child, later learned to be Bryant's son, was sitting at the front of the vehicle. Neither person on the ATV was wearing a helmet or protective gear.

When Bryant saw a police unit approaching, he reportedly swerved off the road and sped through fields and down neighboring roads until officers eventually pulled out in front of the ATV on Main Street.

Once stopped, Bryant's son was brought back to his house and released to a relative, according to the police department.

Police said they found an illegally-concealed gun on Bryant, which he claimed a friend gave to him.

They also discovered Bryant had been promoting an off-road vehicle drag racing event on his Instagram profile. The event, dubbed "Midcity Madness," was scheduled to take place Saturday, and it reportedly entailed blocking off traffic on the Mississippi River Bridge to perform stunts.

Bryant was arrested Saturday and booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on charges of drag racing on a public road, criminal negligence, child desertion, illegal carrying of a weapon and reckless operation of an off-road vehicle. His bond was set at $5,500.