Florida drug dealer arrested again, previously given clemency by Biden

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In a statement, Sheriff Grady Judd criticized Latimore and the commutation.

“Tony Latimore told our detectives that he does not sell ‘a lot of drugs’ but sells them ‘from time to time to make money.’ Well, isn’t that something — an honest drug dealer,” Judd stated. “This guy should have still been in federal prison, but thanks to President Biden, he’s back out on the street peddling dangerous drugs like fentanyl. This is why soft-on-crime policies don’t work — they endanger lives."

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POLK COUNTY, Fla. – A Winter Haven man was arrested in Polk County on several drug-related charges, just weeks after a commuted federal sentence ended, according to the sheriff’s office.

In a release, deputies said they received information back in June that the man — identified as Antoine “Tony” Delynn Latimore, 42 — was selling illegal narcotics in the area. Detectives then launched an undercover operation, the sheriff’s office said.

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The sheriff’s office said that on two different dates in June, undercover detectives arranged to buy:

100 fentanyl pills
100 MDMA (Ecstasy) pills
Officials said the investigation continued into last month, when detectives said Latimore took steps toward a much larger deal.

Alleged plan to buy kilos of cocaine
In July, detectives said Latimore asked undercover investigators whether they knew anyone selling cocaine, telling them he wanted to “purchase a large amount and then sell it himself.”

According to the sheriff’s office, a purchase of 3 kilograms of cocaine was arranged for July 29.

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Investigators said Latimore proposed using his 1983 Buick — which he claimed was worth more than $80,000 due to upgrades including rims, an audio system and other modifications — as collateral for the deal.

Prior federal case cited in report
Detectives also learned Latimore had been arrested in 2019 during an undercover operation involving the Lakeland FBI, Tampa DEA and Florida Highway Patrol, the sheriff’s office said, after investigators said he sold crack cocaine to a confidential source.

Officials said Latimore pleaded guilty in 2020 to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine, and was sentenced to 10 years and 10 months in federal prison. The sheriff’s office said his sentence was later commuted to July 16 due to an executive clemency grant signed by President Joe Biden that took effect in January 2025.

Charges filed after July 31 arrest
Latimore was taken into custody in Winter Haven on July 31, the sheriff’s office said, and was charged with:

Trafficking in fentanyl over 14 grams (F1)
Trafficking in MDMA over 10 grams (F2)
Maintaining a vehicle to traffic drugs (F2)
Possession of drug paraphernalia (M1)

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