Belton man sentenced for stashing illegal firearms during police chase
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A 26-year-old Belton, Missouri man was sentenced in federal court for illegally having firearms that he stashed under the deck of a residence while running from police through a residential neighborhood.
Jonathon Pentlin was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to eight years and four months in federal prison without parole.
Pentlin pleaded guilty in June to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Court documents say a police helicopter was following a stolen 2015 Ford Focus, which Pentlin was driving, from Belton to a Phillips 66 gas station in Kansas City, Mo., on Feb. 23, 2022.
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Law enforcement officers were conducting surveillance on Pentlin and another person as part of an ongoing investigation into a residential burglary in which multiple firearms were stolen.
Court records say a passenger got out of the Focus and into another vehicle at the gas station.
Pentlin continued driving the stolen Focus westbound on Red Bridge Road. As the helicopter followed the Focus, Pentlin began speeding. The Focus then crashed into an innocent motorist in the area of 107th Terrace and Grandview Road, causing significant damage to that motorist’s vehicle as well as injury to the motorist.
Pentlin got out of his vehicle and ran westbound through several residential backyards. A Kansas City police sergeant who got out of his vehicle in an attempt to apprehend Pentlin saw that Pentlin was armed with a handgun as he was running through the backyards.
Additional officers arrived and located Pentlin in the backyard of a residence on E. 107th Terrace. Officers ordered Pentlin to get on the ground, but he refused to follow their commands and continued to act erratically, according to court documents.
Court records say Pentlin balled up his fists, assumed a fighting posture, and reached for his waistband as if he still had a firearm, while stating, “I’m going to kill you all.”
A Kansas City police officer shot Pentlin with a taser and he fell on his back. While on the ground, Pentlin continued to resist arrest and tried to kick officers. While taking Pentlin into custody, he bit an officer on the right thigh, which caused an open wound with bruising and swelling, according to court documents.
While officers waited for EMS to arrive, Pentlin continuously slammed his head into the grass and attempted to bite several officers’ hands and fingers.
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An ATF agent with a police dog searched the area and found two firearms, a loaded Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun and a loaded Beretta 9mm semi-automatic handgun, under the deck of a residence in a densely populated neighborhood less than a mile from an elementary school.
Officers also found two plastic baggies that contained approximately 4.03 grams of methamphetamine, ammunition, and drug paraphernalia in the stolen car Pentlin was driving.
Court documents also refer to a pending case in Cass County in which Pentlin ran from law enforcement officers at speeds reaching 100 miles per hour. Pentlin drove recklessly, entering the oncoming lane of traffic. After officers terminated the chase, Pentlin lost control of his vehicle and struck a white van. The collision caused the van to slide and roll one time down an embankment, causing injuries to the driver and two youth passengers.
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Pentlin ran from his vehicle, which also flipped, but was eventually apprehended. Police officers found a loaded firearm in Pentlin’s vehicle.
Pentlin has prior felony convictions for tampering with a motor vehicle, possessing a controlled substance, and distributing marijuana.
