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COLUMBIA, S.C. (BFMG) — A Columbia man who led officers on a high-speed chase that ended in a crash in Lexington County has pleaded guilty in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Anthony Demetrius Reese, 55, of Columbia, admitted to the federal firearm charge and is being held on $150,000 bail at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison, a fine of up to $250,000, possible restitution and three years of supervised release. A federal judge will sentence him after reviewing a presentence report.
Authorities said Columbia police first encountered Reese on Aug. 31, 2025, while investigating the suspicious disappearance of Angela Fuller, a Columbia woman and Reese’s girlfriend who had been reported missing by a relative. Fuller was last seen with Reese.
Officers spotted Reese driving a 2003 Honda Pilot with a license plate registered to another vehicle on Bush River Road and attempted a traffic stop, but police said he fled, reaching speeds of more than 100 mph. The pursuit crossed into Lexington County and ended when Reese crashed into another car at the intersection of North Lake Drive and Sunset Boulevard in Lexington.
Investigators recovered a loaded firearm from Reese’s vehicle after the crash. Because of prior felony convictions for domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature, shoplifting third offense or greater, second-degree burglary and second-degree assault and battery, Reese is prohibited from possessing guns or ammunition.
Law enforcement later found Fuller’s body following an extensive search. Testing confirmed that the firearm recovered from Reese’s vehicle matched the weapon used in her killing, authorities said.
In addition to the federal gun case, Reese faces state charges of murder, unauthorized removal of a dead body, possession of a weapon during a violent crime and possession of a stolen pistol. He has pleaded not guilty to those charges and remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in state court.
