On Friday, MNPD initiated a traffic stop on Joshua Staples(25). What started with a simple possession case quickly turned into one with guns and hollow point bullets in a drum magazine.
During the interaction, the officer explained he smelled marijuana coming from the car, and Staples said that “someone” had smoked in his car earlier, but it wasn’t him. The officer noticed Staples’ hand was concealed between his seat and the center console. The officer opened the door and asked him to exit the vehicle, at which time Joshua Staples but a bag of 3 grams of marijuana in his mouth and began to chew it, in an attempt to swallow the evidence.
The officer grabbed Staples’ face at the lower jaw to prevent him from swallowing and directed him to “spit it out”. At that time, Staples began to choke on the plastic bag with 3 grams of weed, and the officer pulled him from the vehicle to assist him, as he finally spit it out to keep from choking.
During the struggle a Springfield Arms XD 40 cal was noticed in the drivers seat between his legs and was recovered, it was loaded with 12 rounds, 1 of which was a hollow point.
During a further search of the vehicle, a loaded Century Arms C39 semi auto pistol with a drum magazine was found on the backseat. A total of 74 rounds were in the drum magazine, 3 rounds were modified as hollow point bullets.
The Charges:
- Unlawful possession of a weapon ($1000 bond)
- Felony Tampering w/evidence ($1000 bond)
- Resisting arrest ($500 bond)
- Possession ($500 bond)
- Unlawful possession of a weapon ($1000 bond)
- Felony Restricted Ammunition- Bullet w/ Hollow Nose Cavity ($1000 bond)
Joshua Staples was released via the pre-trial program, and will appear in court on 03/02/2018. He has prior charges for patronizing a prostitute, paraphernalia, possession and exchange. He will appear in court on 03/02/2018.
