LAKELAND, Fla. — Polk County Sheriff's Office said two people were arrested in Lakeland for illegally altering firearms Thursday morning.
Around 6:30 a.m. on Dec. 8, deputies said an FHP trooper pulled over a Chevrolet truck on Kathleen Road near Laurel Woods Lane because the license plate wasn't displayed.
The driver, Samuel Timothy Doolin, 27, refused multiple requests to identify himself and exit the truck. Officials said the trooper noticed a handgun on the seat between Doolin and the passenger, Tiffany Ann Beam, 23. The trooper returned to his patrol vehicle and called PCSO for assistance.
When deputies arrived, they said they approached the truck with ballistic shields for protection and asked the two to step out of the truck. When they refused again, deputies broke the back window of the truck. Doolin still refused, and a taser was used to take him into custody.
PCSO said deputies found five firearms in during their inventory of the truck, including a handgun and rifle that had both been altered to operate as automatic weapons. Authorities said the rifle also had a 14" barrel, while federal law requires at least a 16" barrel. The rifle also had no identifiable model or serial number.
"Samuel Doolin thinks he's above the law. He doesn't like to obey the same laws that every one of us abides by simple traffic laws to more serious crimes of illegal firearms. We don't know what he planned to do with those firearms, but we know he won't be getting them back," said Sheriff Grady Judd.
According to PCSO, Doolin was charged with possession of a fully automatic firearm, possession of a short barrel rifle, possession of a firearm with altered/removed serial number, and resisting without violence.
PCSO said Beam was charged with resisting without violence.
