IRVING, Texas — A Denton man is facing multiple felony charges after fleeing from police during a traffic stop and being found with a firearm and a large quantity of drugs, according to Irving police.
The incident occurred around 11:41 a.m. on Monday, April 13, 2026, when officers observed a 2016 Ford Fusion with an expired and unreadable paper tag leaving the Studio 6 motel, an area police noted that is known for illegal drug sales and prositution.
Officers initiated a traffic stop at Esters Boulevard and the Highway 114 south service road. As soon as the vehicle stopped, the passenger exited and fled on foot toward the nearby Sheraton DFW Airport Hotel, clutching a black crossbody bag.
Police broadcast a description of the suspect while another officer reviewed surveillance footage from the hotel. Video showed a man matching the description running from the direction of the traffic stop, discarding a bag into nearby bushes, and attempting to hide behind a gated dumpster area.
Officers quickly converged on the location and took the suspect into custody without further incident.
The bag was recovered and found to contain a loaded Taurus G2C pistol, a spare loaded magazine, and multiple narcotics, including approximately 112.3 grams of methamphetamine, 8.2 grams of cocaine, and 63 oxycodone pills. Police also recovered a digital scale with residue, and said the drugs were packaged for distribution.
The suspect was identified as 43-year-old Justin Lamont Welker of Denton.
The arrest affidavit said that Welker has a prior felony conviction for robbery out of Denton County in 2022 and that he had been sentenced to 5 years in state prison. He was let out early on parole. This may cause alarm to some readers, but this is common. For a standard 5-year robbery sentence in Texas (non-aggravated like it was in Welker's case), eligibility typically occurs when calendar time plus good conduct time equals 25% of the sentence. For a 5-year sentence, this usually means eligibility to be reviewed for parole in approximately 15 months (1 year and 3 months).
Welker was booked into the Irving Jail and charged with evading arrest on foot, unlawful carrying of a weapon by a convicted felon, and three counts of manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance.
He was later transferred to the Dallas County Jail, where he remains in custody after bond was denied on the drug charges. Based on his record, he will be looking at some serious prison time for the drug trafficking charges.
