NORTHVALE, N.J.—Police here say they seized a loaded handgun concealed inside the vehicle of a sleeping driver who was also charged with drug crimes this morning at Hogan Park.
Suspect Jeremy T. Garcia, 22, of Stony Point, N.Y., is in Bergen County Jail today, accused of weapons and drug charges after police found him while responding to a reported suspicious person possibly sleeping in a vehicle.
As police arrived at 7:45 a.m., Garcia appeared to be asleep in the driver’s seat with the vehicle running, said Northvale Police Chief Howard Ostrow.
“Officers detected the odor of burnt marijuana emanating from the interior of the vehicle and observed what appeared to be a controlled dangerous substance analog in plain view on the passenger’s seat,” Ostrow said.
After several attempts to wake Garcia, he exhibited signs of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, Ostrow said, and was unable to successfully perform standard field sobriety tests.
“Further investigation by the officers led to the discovery of a loaded Glock 19.9mm handgun inside the vehicle,” Ostrow said. “The handgun was void of any identifying serial numbers.”
Also located was an open container of an alcoholic beverage and drug paraphernalia, he said.
Garcia was processed at Northvale Police Headquarters and charged with: possession of a controlled dangerous substance; possession of a controlled dangerous substance analog; possession of drug paraphernalia; unlawful possession of a handgun; unlawful possession of a handgun while committing a drug related crime; possession of a controlled dangerous in a motor vehicle; and driving while intoxicated.