The owner of a downtown Boca Raton electric motorcycle shop is back in police custody after allegedly popping a wheelie on Federal Highway within sight of three uniformed officers — a stunt that violated the terms of his existing probation from an earlier stunt-driving case. Colton Tagle Ralston, 46, of Boca Raton, was arrested October 10 on charges of stunt driving and violating probation.
According to BocaNewsNow.com, a Boca Raton police officer saw a man on a white electric motorcycle do a wheelie northbound on Federal Highway the night before the arrest, forcing heavy traffic to slow in both lanes. The rider lowered the front tire just before passing the officer and two other uniformed officers, then gave them an apologetic wave, the outlet reported, citing the police account. The officer did not stop the rider that night because he was handling another call, but he recognized the man from several encounters over the preceding months — Ralston, who owns Boca Scooters, an e-moto shop on NW 1st Avenue that promotes and sells electric motorcycles, per police.
Zip-Tied Plate Led Police Back to Ralston
The following day, the same officer spotted Ralston riding the identical e-moto near 400 NE 2nd Street and pulled him over near 400 NE 4th Avenue, according to the police report cited by the outlet. The motorcycle's license plate was held on with zip ties, the report states. When asked about the wheelie, Ralston reportedly put his head down, shook it, and said he had not meant to do it.
Ralston told officers the bike was too powerful for him to handle and that he had never been around bikes, per the arrest report. That claim sits awkwardly alongside his own public history: in a November 2017 feature in VoyageMIA Magazine, Ralston said he launched Boca Scooters because he had always been interested in motorcycles and two-wheeled motorized vehicles. Sunbiz records list Boca Scooters LLC at an address c/o Colton Ralston.
Probation Violation Raises the Stakes
Ralston was already on probation for an earlier arrest tied to filming stunt driving on an e-moto, and probation terms bar new law violations or citations, police said. That status is why the new wheelie carries heavier consequences than a routine traffic stop — a probation violation under Florida Statute § 948.06 can trigger detention without bond. Under Florida Statute § 316.191, performing a wheelie on a public roadway is treated as a first-degree misdemeanor carrying fines between $500 and $1,000, up to 30 days of administrative vehicle impoundment, and a mandatory one-year driver's license revocation, as detailed by the Florida Senate. A related statute, § 316.2085(2), requires motorcycle and moped operators to keep both wheels on the ground at all times on public streets, with exceptions only for unavoidable road-surface conditions.
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office booking records show Ralston was processed into the Palm Beach County Jail on October 10 at 2:31 p.m. on the two counts, according to Florida Arrests. He was released on $25,000 bond and is due in court November 10 in Delray Beach. Law enforcement charges are allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
A Shop With a Mixed Track Record
Boca Scooters carries a D- rating from the Better Business Bureau Serving Southeast Florida & the Caribbean over unanswered customer complaints. The shop's regulatory history stretches back further still: state administrative records from June 2014 show Boca Scooters LLC and Ralston were involved in formal proceedings before the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles over motor vehicle dealer licensing compliance. Ralston has also served as a visible downtown merchant over the years, acting as a business spokesperson in 2019 and 2022 civic discussions about how Brightline station development and railway expansion affected small shops on NW 1st Avenue.
Part of a Wider Pattern in Palm Beach County
Statewide citations for street racing and stunt driving climbed from roughly 850 in 2019 to more than 2,400 in 2023, according to figures Hoodline attributed to Miami New Times in its coverage of a warehouse takeover case. The rise has coincided with growing concern over e-moto safety specifically: a 2026 report from Palm Beach County Commissioner Gregg Weiss's office documented 16 fatal micromobility crashes countywide, including six deaths in 2025, while cautioning that official totals likely undercount e-moto incidents because of how standardized crash forms categorize them.
Ralston's arrest adds to a string of recent Palm Beach County cases involving reckless riding, including a driver clocked at 96 mph who faced DUI and burnout charges in August and a Boca Raton teen charged as an adult in a fatal scooter rider's DUI case last month. Whether Ralston's probation will be revoked over the new charge is now up to the court when his case is heard in Delray Beach next month.
