Crime log: Car stop nets gun, child porn case, stolen car arrests
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We've rounded up details about several recent cases in Berkeley. If you have questions about local police activity, send a news tip to The Scanner. Photos are always appreciated.
CAR STOP NETS GUN Berkeley police arrested an 18-year-old from Alameda with a loaded gun during a car stop this week in South Berkeley, authorities report. On Tuesday, police stopped the car at about 9:15 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Ward Street, police said.
They determined that the driver, Carlos Palafox, 26, of Daly City had an outstanding arrest warrant, BPD said.
One of his passengers, Ermuun Tuvshintues, 18, of Alameda was carrying a loaded gun, police said.
The Alameda County DA's office has since charged Tuvshintues with multiple felonies, including an allegation that he was already on probation or another form of supervised release when he was arrested, according to court records.
He remains in custody and is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Dec. 19.
CHILD PORNOGRAPHY CASE: CHARGES FILED A Berkeley man is facing child pornography charges after a recent police investigation, court records show.
Berkeley PD's Youth Services detectives got a "CyberTip" in November from the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force about someone in the city who possessed child sexual abuse material.
Detectives obtained numerous search warrants for online accounts and identified 27-year-old Xiao Feng Chen as their suspect, police said in response to a Scanner inquiry. They arrested him Tuesday at his Berkeley home.
The Alameda County DA's office has charged him with possession of child pornography, transmitting child pornography and various criminal enhancements, according to court records.
Chen remains in custody and is scheduled for a plea hearing Dec. 19. No bail amount is listed.
FLOCK ALERT LEADS TO STOLEN CAR Berkeley police on patrol this past week arrested two men in a stolen Audi, recovering a stun gun and "a host of fraud/identity theft related items (personal information, electronic card readers, access cards, etc.)," police said.
Just after 2:30 a.m. Sunday, police got an alert from the Flock automated license plate reader system about a stolen car on Ashby Avenue near Interstate 80.
Police said the black Audi A4 had been stolen from San Francisco on Dec. 6.
Officers spotted the car heading south on Bolivar Drive near South Aquatic Park and stopped the driver, police said.
Officers searched the vehicle occupants and found them in possession of methamphetamine, authorities said.
The driver, a 40-year-old Las Vegas man, was arrested on suspicion of possession of a stolen vehicle, being a felon in possession of a stun gun and drug charges, BPD said.
His passenger, a 34-year-old Oakland man, was arrested on suspicion of drug possession charges.
BY THE NUMBERS Berkeley police have removed about 100 guns from the streets this year, according to recent BPD data.
