GENESEE COUNTY/No shots fired in Rt. 33 incident in Stafford/LeRoy man facing charges along with his passenger

On September 19, 2021 about 6:04p.m., the Genesee County Emergency Dispatch Center received a report of a vehicle driving erratically traveling west on Rt. 33 in the town of Stafford.

A Sheriff’s deputy located the vehicle on Rt. 33 and conducted a traffic stop in the area of Mill road. Once the vehicle stopped, the deputy observed that there were two occupants in the vehicle. The operator of the vehicle fled from the car and ran southbound across Rt. 33 into a farm laneway.

As the deputy pursued the suspect, he observed the subject pull a handgun form his waistband and then lost sight of him in a small wooded area. The deputy then returned to the vehicle and heard what sounded like a gunshot coming from the area where he had lost sight of the suspect. The passenger, meanwhile, was detained and area was secured.

Several other law enforcement agencies then responded to the scene to assist in searching for the suspect/driver.

During the investigation, what were initially believed to be gunshots continued to be heard from the area where the suspect was last seen. It was determined that the gunshot sounds were coming from a wildlife scare cannon which is a sound emitting device, fueled by propane, used to deter wildlife from damaging crops. It was confirmed that the property owner had such a device installed in the area of the incident and it was set to go off periodically.

The NYS Police Aviation unit helicopter coordinated with NYS Police drone operators and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office drome operators, and eventually located the suspect/driver about a mile to the northeast near Westbrook road, where the suspect was attempting to hide in a wooded area.

At about 11:20p.m., the suspect, Arthur J. Brown, 44, of Lake St., LeRoy, was taken into custody by the Monroe County Sheriff’s SWAT unit without further incident.

A search of the vehicle was conducted and of the area where the suspect had run to following the traffic stop and a handgun was recovered.

Brown is charged with criminal possession of a weapon 2nd, a class C felony, menacing a police officer, a class D felony, tampering with physical evidence, a class E felony, obstruction of governmental administration 2nd, criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th, operation of a motor vehicle impaired by drugs, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and failure to keep right.

Brown was arraigned in the Town of Stafford Court and remanded to the Genesee County Jail without bail.

He is scheduled to re-appear in court on October 5, 2021 at 9:00a.m.

The passenger in the vehicle, Breanna A. Smith, 29, of Lexington Ave., Rochester, was found to have an active violation of probation warrant out of the state of Florida. Smith was initially held on the warrant, however the State of Florida would not extradite Smith. She was released from custody and issued an appearance ticket for criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th and will appear in the Town of Stafford Court at a later date.

No one was injured in the incident.

The Genesee County Sheriff’s Office was assisted in the investigation by the City of Batavia Police Department, the NYS Police, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, NYS DEC and the Genesee County Emergency Management Office.