Wyandotte police arrest felon with stolen loaded gun, cocaine

Apr 22, 2023

A traffic stop for a relatively minor offense led to the arrest of a convicted felon in Wyandotte, a man who allegedly had a loaded gun in his waistband and cocaine inside his vehicle.

The incident began at around 3 a.m. May 22, in the area of Fort Street and Eureka Road. An officer stopped the 53-year-old Wyandotte man's vehicle for defective equipment.

According to police, while interacting with the driver the officer's suspicions were raised due to what was described as the man's "furtive gestures and defiant attitude."

The officer observed what appeared to be evidence of possible narcotics possession. Police K-9 Jax was called to the scene where the dog conducted an outer perimeter check of the vehicle.

When officers requested that the man step out of the vehicle, police said he became enraged and refused to cooperate.

Deputy Police Chief Archie Hamilton said that despite the volatile situation, the officers remained calm and tried to reason with the angry man. They eventually were able to convince him to exit the vehicle, but he was described as less than cooperative.

Hamilton said the man dropped his hands toward his waistband, despite the officers pleading with him to place his hands on the vehicle.

"While the officers were attempting to gain control of the man, an officer observed a firearm hidden in his waistband," Hamilton said. "The officers quickly disarmed the man and secured him in handcuffs. Additionally, the officers located a bag containing cocaine."

Police soon found out that the firearm, which was loaded with 12 rounds, was stolen out of Wyandotte and the man was a convicted felon.

"What an outstanding job by these officers," Hamilton said. "While the majority of us were home sleeping, they were exposing themselves to great danger to ensure our safety. Despite the fact that this felon was transporting cocaine, was armed with a stolen firearm, and was extremely uncooperative, the officers still treated him with respect, that of which he did not earn, and made more than a fair amount of attempts to negotiate with him rather than using force."

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