Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!
Florida Man With 'Joker' Tattoos Ends Up Back Behind Bars
Lawrence Sullivan seems to have added to his collection of face tattoos resembling the "Batman" villain since his last brushes with the law.
Why so serious?
A Florida man with face tattoos resembling those of Heath Ledger’s infamous Joker character in “The Dark Knight” was busted this week on a warrant for illegal possession of a firearm, officials said.
Cops caught up with Lawrence Sullivan, 30, on Tuesday in St. Petersburg, busting the easily identifiable man on a warrant from Miami-Dade County, where he was wanted for skipping bail on a charge from last year that stemmed from an arrest for carrying an illegal firearm, according to online jail records.
Sullivan stands out thanks to his bleach-blond hair and slew of face tattoos, including a “Glasgow smile,” inked to resemble scars made on both cheeks from the sides of his mouth, a pair of upside-down crosses, a switchblade on his forehead and, in case the other tattoos didn’t drive home the point, a batman logo above his left eye.
Other tattoos not visible in the mug shot include brass knuckles, a pot leaf, the numbers “666” and “420,” and a likeness of Freddy Krueger, according to online jail records.
Tuesday’s arrest isn’t Sullivan’s first brush with the law, and he appears to have added to his ink since his last dustup.
Last year, he was arrested twice in an eight-day span, first on May 23, 2017 for an illegal concealed carry of a handgun, and a second time on May 31, 2017, when cops busted him for loitering and smoking a joint in public, the Miami Herald reported at the time.
In the first arrest, Cops responded to the Hammocks Place Apartments in Miami on May 23, where residents had reported a man waving a handgun in public, according to the Herald. Sullivan, who was 29 at the time, was arrested with a loaded Smith & Wesson revolver, and was carrying six rounds in his pocket.
In the second arrest, he was busted after a cop spotted him standing around smoking a marijuana cigarette. The Joker look-alike tried to drop the weed, but the police weren’t fooled by this high-minded attempt at looking innocent.
Sullivan’s mom said her son was a “good kid,” who suffered from mental health issues, and chose to express himself with the ghoulish body art, according to an interview last year with CBS 4 Miami.
“He’s a good kid. You know. He has a lot of tattoos. But he’s a nice kid with some problems. He is mentally disabled and is handicapped,” she said.
After his spooky likeness made headlines last year, Sullivan told the news station that his ink made him popular in jail, CBS reported at the time.
“I was treated like a celebrity inside,” Sullivan told CBS 4 after making bail.
But he insisted his frightening visage didn’t make him an unpleasant person, at least to the cops who arrested him.
“Ask the police officers that arrested me how polite I was, did not curse them,” he said. “They treated me real respectful. They are really good cops.”
Sullivan was picked up Tuesday by Florida’s parole and probation agency, and is currently being held without bail at the Pinellas County Jail on the warrant from Miami-Dade County, a spokesman for the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office told Oxygen.com.
It was not immediately clear if the heavily tattooed man had secured a defense attorney.
[Photo Credit: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office]
