[DO NOT PUBLISH]

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT

________________________ No. 19

- 13576 Non

- Argument Calendar

________________________ D.C. Docket No. 5:18

- cr - 00048

- JDW

- PRL

- 1

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff

- Appellee,

versus JOVAN DEMETRIU S FREDERICKS, a.k.a. Jovan D. Fredericks,
Defendant

- Appellant.

________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Flori da

________________________ ( May 26, 2020 ) Before WILLIAM PRYOR , MARTIN and ROSENBAUM , Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:

Case: 19-13576 Date Filed: 05/26/2020 Page: 1 of 42 Jovan Demetrius Fredericks appeals his convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm, for possessi ng narcotics with the intent to distribute, and for possessin g a firearm during and in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(g)(1) , 924(e) , 9 24(c)(1)(A)(i) ; 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) , 841 (b)(1)(C)

. Fredericks appeals the denial of his motion to suppress . He argues that the officers violated his right to be free from an unlawful seizure under the Fourth Amendment when they exceed ed their authority to c onduct an investigatory stop and arrested him without probable cause or a warrant

. We affirm. We review the denial of a motion to supp ress evidence as a mixed question of law and fact

. United States v. Perez , 443 F.3d 772, 774 (11th Cir. 2006). We

r eview rulings of law de novo and related findings of fact for clear error. Id. The district court did not err by denying Frederick s ’s motion to suppress. As Officer Erik Cabrales of the Ocala Police Department and Officer Rodriguez patrolled an apartment complex known for violence and drug sales, they observed Frederick s sitting outside holding a cigarette that had been hand

- rolled in brown
paper . Cabrales noticed Fredericks was partially concealing the brown, hand

- rolled cigarette in the palm of his left hand. So he asked Fredericks what he had in his hand, but Fredericks did not respond. Cabrales asked again, a nd Frederick s displa yed a cigarette lighter in his other hand but continued to conceal the cigarette. The district court found after viewing body

- camera video from the

Case: 19-13576 Date Filed: 05/26/2020 Page: 2 of 43 officers that Cabrales then told Fredericks, “I see what you got in your hand, Man. I could see it from whe re I was at.” At this point, th e officers “ ha [d] a reasonable, articulable suspicion that criminal activity [was] afoot ,” Illinois v. Wardlow , 528 U.S. 119, 123 (2000) , and could detain Fredericks to investigate. Cabrales asked Fredericks to stand up. But w hen Frederick s stood , he abruptly reached behind his back with his hand that was holding the cigarette. Cabrales grabbed Fredericks’s arm to prevent him from reaching behind his back. As Cabrales did so, he felt a bulge on Fredericks’s right hip, which he suspected was a firearm. Cabrales immediately advised Rodriguez, “He’s got a gun on him.” For their safety, the officers placed Fredericks in handcuffs before removing the concealed firearm from Fredericks’s waist. T he o fficers had the right to handcuff Fredericks to ensure their safety and to complete their investigation

. Cabrales also
ha d probable cause to arrest Frederick s based on the firearm concealed under
F r ederick s ’s shirt

. See Fla. Stat. § 7 90.01(2) (“A person who carries a concealed firearm on or about his or her person commits a felony of the third degree”); Fla. Stat. § 790.001(2) (defining “concealed firearm” as “any firearm .

. . which is carried on or about a person in such a manner as to conceal th e firearm from the ordinary sight of another person”). As the officers escorted Fredericks to a patrol car, he tugged repeatedly at a pocket, from wh ich the officers had the right to seize

Case: 19-13576 Date Filed: 05/26/2020 Page: 3 of 44 a black pouch containing m ethyl enedioxy methamphetamine , 1 marijua na, cocaine, and heroin.
We AFFIRM Fredericks ’s convictions.

1 After the incident, law enforcement tested the substance in the c igarette Fredericks was holding when Cabrales and Rodriguez encountered him. It also contained methyl enedioxy methamphetamine

.

Case: 19-13576 Date Filed: 05/26/2020 Page: 4 of 4