Press Release
The Office of State Attorney Glenn Hess announces that on February 9, 2018, a Bay County jury convicted Samuel Wyndham Reager of Attempted First Degree Murder of a Law Enforcement Officer with a Firearm, Robbery with a Firearm, and Armed Trespass in the shooting of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Officer David Brady, the theft of his FWC vessel, and the subsequent break in of a structure in the Cove area. The events took place on August 7, 2015, while Officer Brady was investigating a disturbance on a boat in St. Andrew Bay. Reager, who had a warrant for his arrest, shot Officer Brady twice, and he and co-defendant Lachlan Akins fled in Officer Brady’s FWC vessel, attempting to strike him with the vessel while fleeing. Later, they broke into a garage in the Cove area while attempting to elude authorities during an extensive manhunt. Akins testified against Reager during the trial.
The case was tried by Chief Assistant State Attorney Larry Basford and Assistant State Attorney Peter Overstreet. The Bay County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Multiple agencies assisted in the investigation and manhunt, including the United States Coast Guard, the Panama City Police Department, the Panama City Beach Police Department, the Lynn Haven Police Department, the Springfield Police Department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Florida Highway Patrol, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Circuit Judge Brantley Clark scheduled sentencing for March 23, 2018. Reager faces a sentence of up to life imprisonment.
For additional information, contact Chief Assistant State Attorney Larry Basford.