A simple traffic stop so often turns into much more complicated legal troubles. That's the situation for a West New York man pulled over for speeding early on a recent day.
Police say it was 3:30 in the morning when the 20-year-old was going 50 miles per hour in an area with a 25 mph speed limit. By the time what began as a traffic stop was over, the man faced a wide variety of criminal charges for weapons offenses and drug offenses.
The traffic stop was at 43rd Street and Kennedy Boulevard in North Bergen.
Police said the man was unable to supply a driver's license or registration for his vehicle when asked.
The officer making the stop then noticed a digital scale in the back seat of the black 2001 Land Rover. On the scale was a white powdery substance. It was at this point that the man was asked to step out of the vehicle so that he could be placed under arrest for driving without a license and without proof of auto insurance.
Police said they then patted him down, finding both cocaine and marijuana in his pants pockets.
Officers said the man signed a form consenting to having the police search his SUV.
In the vehicle they found a loaded pistol with 10 bullets, as well as a magazine clip containing another 10 bullets. They also uncovered a knife in a book bag stowed under the passenger seat.
Officers said they also found a stun gun and a set of brass knuckles in the glove compartment of the vehicle.
The man faces a litany of serious criminal charges:
- Four counts: possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes
- Four counts: unlawful possession of a weapon
- Two counts: possession of a controlled and dangerous substance
- Driving an uninsured vehicle
- Driving without a license
- Possession of drug paraphernalia
Resource: newjersey.com: "West New York man arrested with drugs, weapons, police say": January 3, 2011