Laurel Man Arrested During Police Crackdown On 8 Illegal Car Rallies

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — A Laurel man faces charges after he was arrested at one of several illegal car rallies broken up by law enforcement last weekend.

Members of the Maryland Car Rally Task Force and partner law enforcement agencies teamed up to prevent and crack down on ongoing illegal car rallies this past weekend across Prince George’s and Montgomery counties.

The joint operation started at 10 p.m. Saturday and continued through 4 a.m. Sunday. High visibility enforcement patrols were conducted throughout the region, preventing crowds of up to 300 participants engaging in exhibition driving, disorderly behavior and roadway shutdowns.

The task force coordinated monitoring and enforcement operations in the following locations:

• 13136 Mid Atlantic Boulevard in Laurel
• 15878 Gaither Drive in Gaithersburg
• 8519 Rainswood Drive in Hyattsville
• 7854 Beechcraft Avenue in Gaithersburg
• 15887 Commerce Court in Upper Marlboro
• 6120 Executive Boulevard in Rockville
• 6960 Van Dusen Road in Laurel
• 15791 Columbia Pike in Burtonsville

During one of the events, Gonnie Shamuray Lee, 27, of Laurel was arrested and charged with eluding, reckless driving, failure to remain at the scene of a dirt bike crash, attempt by driver to elude uniformed police, reckless driving and other related charges. Lee was apprehended by police after the rally on Mid Atlantic Boulevard was disrupted by police.

Police responded to the Burtonsville location at approximately 3:30 a.m. and dismantled a gathering of almost 300 vehicles. During the enforcement, police arrested Jonathan Armando Mejia, 28, of Dundalk on two arrest warrants. He was wanted by Baltimore County Police Department for first-degree assault and by Charles County Sheriff’s Office for a failure to appear for driving without a license.