57°
Officer Jeffrey Welsh stopped the Dodge Dart with Michigan license plates on Aberdeen Court after the driver failed to signal a turn shortly after 8 p.m. Tuesday, Capt. George Guzman said.
The driver – who turned out to be unlicensed -- also wasn’t wearing a seatbelt, he said.
Welsh approached from the passenger side and spotted a brick of heroin jutting out of the front-seat passenger’s jacket pocket, the captain said.
The officer also noticed a bulge in his waistband, Guzman said.
Backups arrived soon after and Welsh had the passenger – identified as Steven Castro – step out.
In his waistband was a 9mm Millennium G2 handgun loaded with six bullets, Guzman said.
Castro was also carrying four heroin bricks, the half-ounce of crack and the suspected drug cash, he said.
The driver received a trio of traffic summonses and was released.
Castro, meanwhile, was arrested, processed and sent to the Passaic County Jail to await a first court appearance.
He’s charged with drug and weapons possession, as well as hindering arrest (for giving officers a fake name), Guzman said.
The gun was being sent to the State Police lab to determine whether it may have been used in crimes, the captain said.
Welsh was assisted by Sgt. Jessica Funes, Special Police Officer Euclides Cardona and members of the Prospect Park and William Paterson University police departments, he noted.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Mahwah-Ramsey and receive free news updates.
