April 21, 2006
Gary Davidson
Public Information Officer

SHERIFF’S OFFICE SEARCHING FOR 16-YEAR-OLD BOY WANTED IN DRIVE-BY SHOOTING 

The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the public’s help in locating a 16-year-old boy who was charged in a drive-by shooting in DeLand and then absconded before his case went to trial. Deputies are searching for Brandon Blanks so he can answer to felony charges of aggravated battery with a firearm and grand theft of a firearm. The charges are in connection to a drive-by shooting in May 2005 that injured a 17-year-old boy. Sheriff’s investigators have since concluded that the victim, who recovered from his wound, wasn’t the intended target. 

The shooting took place as a group of people were standing outside a restaurant on South Adelle Avenue. A passenger in a passing vehicle fired a shot that struck the victim in the torso. The investigation of the shooting revealed that Blanks had stolen a 9-mm handgun from a relative and fired the gun from the passing vehicle at someone in the crowd with whom he’d been having an ongoing problem. Sometime after the shooting, Blanks fled to North Carolina but was arrested and later returned to Volusia County. The two cases and a third criminal charge for bringing bullets into the jail have been making their way through the court system. But on April 11, Circuit Court Judge James R. Clayton issued a warrant for Blanks’ arrest after officials filed a violation notice saying he had absconded from his court-ordered pre-trial supervision. 

Investigators believe that Blanks may still be in the area. He’s about 5’6” and 130 pounds, has black hair and brown eyes and also goes by the name of Brandon Terrance Blaks. His last known address was on Covered Bridge Drive in DeLand. Anyone with information about Blanks’ whereabouts is asked to contact Sheriff’s investigator Kim Partington at (386) 943-7866 or Crime Stoppers of Northeast Florida, toll-free, at (888) 277-TIPS. Callers to Crime Stoppers will remain anonymous and can qualify for a reward of up to $1,000.

Link to July 29, 2005 press release