Man sentenced to 25 years in prison for shooting into occupied cars

FORT MYERS, Fla. —

A man was found guilty of shooting into occupied cars and sentenced to 25 years in prison on Monday.

According to the State Attorney's Office, Jonathan Blank, 30, was adjudicated guilty and sentenced to 25 years in prison, followed by five years of probation, for shooting into an occupied vehicle, discharging a firearm from a vehicle and two counts of aggravated assault.

The crime occurred in November 2020. According to the State Attorney's Office, Blank pulled up next to a Mustang convertible near a mall on US-41 and Estero Parkway. Blank then fired a shot into the car, unprovoked.

Inside the Mustang were a man, a woman and their 5-year-old son. The bullet narrowly missed hitting the woman and child, the State Attorney's Office said.

Blank then fled the scene, and two hours later, shot at two other occupied vehicles in Collier County. He was arrested by the Collier County Sheriff's Office.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Steven Vitale.

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