Sheriff’s Office searching for Trae Byron Ward
Late in the afternoon of May 2, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office announced that a warrant had been issued for the suspect in a May 1 homicide that took place the previous day in the 2500 Block of Colson Avenue in Sarasota.
The suspect was identified as Trae Byron Ward, 33, of Sarasota.
Deputies and paramedics responded to the Colson Avenue location after being alerted about a shooting, a news release said. Upon arrival, deputies found “a man lying in the front yard with a gunshot wound to the chest.” The victim was identified as Reginald Graves, 45, the release added.
“Paramedics provided life-saving aid” and transported Graves to Sarasota Memorial Hospital, the release continued. Graves was pronounced dead at 7:54 p.m. on May 1, the release added. “Next of kin was notified,” the release said.
Members of the Criminal Investigations Section “responded to the scene and conducted interviews,” the release continued. “Investigators are seeking additional witnesses and surveillance video,” it noted.
“This is believed to be an isolated incident,” the May 2 news release pointed out. “If you have any information on the whereabouts of Ward, please contact the SCSO Criminal Investigations Section” at 941-861-4900 or Crime Stoppers at 941-366-8477 (366-TIPS) or by going online at www.sarasotacrimestoppers.com,” the release added.
A Sarasota News Leader review of records maintained by the Office of the Sarasota County Clerk of the Circuit Court and County Comptroller found 74 cases associated with Trae Byron Ward, with a date of birth indicating that that individual was the person named in the Sheriff’s Office news release.
Almost all of the cases involved traffic infractions, with the earliest dating to September 2007. He has been cited for driving without a license, violating the seat belt law, running stop signs, speeding, having illegal tinting on vehicle windows and having an open container of alcohol in a vehicle, for examples.
However, in January 2012, Ward was charged with three felony counts: Possession of Concealed Firearm, Possession of Ammunition by Convicted Felon, and Possession of Firearm by Convicted Felon.
The Probable Cause Affidavit in that case said that a Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office deputy was running radar on U.S. 301, just south of Desoto Road, when the deputy clocked Ward driving 62 mph in a 45 mph zone. The affidavit noted that the deputy “reached speeds of 80 mph” as he tried to catch up to Ward.
After Ward finally stopped — near the 1800 block of 34th Street in Sarasota — and backup for which the deputy had radioed had arrived on the scene, the officers found an unregistered firearm under the driver’s seat. The affidavit noted that the weapon “was fully loaded with one round chambered.”
After Ward was read his Miranda Rights, the narrative continued, the deputy who was first on the scene asked him why he had not pulled over, since that deputy had activated his lights while following Ward. The response from Ward, the affidavit said, was, “I knew I was going to jail.”
Ward also claimed the firearm belonged to his aunt, the affidavit pointed out.
Court records show that Ward was placed on probation for two years, dating from Nov. 16, 2012, as a result of the January 2012 charges.
Then, on Aug. 3, 2014, Ward was charged with one felony count each of possessing cocaine with intent to sell and possessing dilaudid with intent to sell within 1,000 feet of a daycare center on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Sarasota.
Ward entered a plea of “No Contest” in that case, court records show. He was ordered to pay a total of $683 in court costs and fines. That figure later rose to $783 after he failed to pay the original amount.
Ultimately, in April 2024, Ward was put on a payment plan that called for him to turn over $1,762 to the Clerk’s Office, court records note. He made payments through late March, the records show, though he still owed money to the Clerk’s Office in late April. A letter from the office advised him of his failure to continue the payments.