Loaded Stolen Gun, Drugs Found During Cranford Traffic Stop, Police Say

CRANFORD, NJ — A traffic stop in Cranford led to the discovery of a loaded handgun that had been reported stolen, along with suspected drugs inside the vehicle, according to police.

The stop happened Thursday evening on Centennial Avenue near Grant Street after officers pulled over a 2016 Hyundai for an equipment violation, police said.

During the stop, officers found a .40 caliber Glock 23 handgun loaded with 13 rounds of hollow-point ammunition, according to police. The firearm had previously been reported stolen out of North Carolina.

Police also said officers found a large amount of marijuana and prescription pills inside the vehicle.

The three people inside the vehicle were arrested without incident, police said.

The driver, Markeith Leverett, 22, of Orange, and passengers Yazmir Holloway, 18, of Newark, and Isaiah Singleton, 23, of Newark, were each charged with multiple offenses, including firearm possession, receiving stolen property, possession of hollow-point ammunition, possession of a large-capacity magazine, and drug-related offenses, according to police.

Singleton and Holloway were also charged with certain persons not to possess firearms, police said.

At the time of their arrests, Leverett, Holloway and Singleton were being held in the Union County Jail pending detention hearings, according to police.