Taranaki Police have charged a man and seized firearms and drugs following a traffic stop in Stratford overnight.
Around 1.40am today, Police conducted a routine traffic stop near the intersection of Cordelia Street and Fenton Street.
During the stop, Police noticed drug paraphernalia and the smell of cannabis coming from the vehicle, and the driver and passenger were detained while a search was carried out on the vehicle.
As a result of the search a .22 3D printed firearm, a shotgun, ammunition, numerous other offensive weapons, an amount of methamphetamine, and an amount of cannabis, were located and seized.
Senior Sergeant Malcolm Collins says one of the firearms was reportedly located tucked up in the driver’s footwell.
“There is no good reason for a firearm to be so easily accessible to a driver – this was a great catch, and I want to commend staff for their vigilance and excellent work to get these firearms out of the community.”
A 37-year-old man was arrested and is due in New Plymouth District Court today, charged with possession of methamphetamine, possession of cannabis, two counts of unlawfully possessing ammunition, and five counts of possessing an offensive weapon.
