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Suffolk County resident Vernon Thornton, age 32, of Wyandanch, was arrested in Merrick around 8:20 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 26, after detectives working a special detail aimed against opioids sale and use, after he was pulled over for traffic violations, said the Nassau County Police.
According to detectives, officers on patrol spotted a red Kia with an improperly displayed front license plate fail to signal while making a right turn out of the parking lot at 1780 Sunrise Highway.
When stopped, officers said they detected a strong odor of marijuana and removed Thornton from the vehicle, police said.
During an investigation, the officers recovered a loaded handgun and a high capacity magazine from the vehicle. A substance believed to be marijuana and an additional controlled substance was also recovered, police added.
A subsequent investigation found the loaded handgun had been reported stolen.
Thornton was charged with:
- Two counts of criminal possession of a weapon
- Criminal possession of stolen property
- Criminal possession of a controlled substance
- Unlawful possession of marijuana
- Multiple vehicle and traffic law violations.
He will be arraigned on Wednesday, Jan. 27, in Mineola.
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