A Pennsylvania man was arrested in Jersey City last night as he was heading into the Holland Tunnel, getting caught with an unlicensed shotgun and 175 rounds of ammo inside of a blue plastic drum in the open bed of his truck, police said.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Marlon Murphy, 45, of Easton P.A., was charged with unlawful possession of a weapon around 6:30 p.m. last night, according to Port Authority police spokesman Joe Pentangelo.
A Port Authority police officer on patrol near the Holland Tunnel saw a green Toyota pickup truck with Pennsylvania plates driving through the toll plaza with a large blue plastic drum in the open bed of the truck, officials said.
The officer pulled the vehicle over to ensure that the vehicle wasn’t carrying any hazardous materials, also inquiring if there were any explosives or weapons in the drum, authorities said.
The driver responded there was a shotgun and ammunition inside the drum, prompting the officer to inspect the drum, police said.
Inside the drum, stashed inside a pair of pants, was a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun and 175 rounds of ammunition – which Murphy could not provide any documentation for, officials said.
Murphy was placed under arrest, the Toyota was impounded and his bail was set at $30,000, authorities said.
His shotgun in pants inside barrel. S mart
Lol here comes another govenor’s pardon. BTW the author should really look into the process of obtaining a firearm because there’s no such thing as an “unlicensed” firearm. 😉
What crime was committed? Under federal law you can transport an unloaded firearm between states, yes even in a pair of jeans. Unless the individual was a felon or an otherwise prohibited person in possession of a firearm he was within his legal rights to transport the shotgun between PA and NY as long as possession of the shotgun is legal in both states.
Dang Marlon, drumming with a loaded shotgun? Sounds dangerous! Anything for a gimmick these days smh
As odd as this all is, it sounds like he was transporting legally through NJ under the the federal Firearm Owners Protection Act. I’ve seen an old pair of pants turned into a soft gun case to protect a guns’ finish – so that’s not so strange. If the shotgun was in the rear of the truck and not in the passenger compartment, a 55 gallon drum, although strange, should suffice for a way to store the gun.
As for being “unlicensed”, there is no such thing as a shotgun “license”. I cringe every time I read an article on NJ gun crime by a reporter who does not know the basics of NJ gun laws.
Unfortunately, now they’ll push hard for a conviction on any technicality, gun related or otherwise, to protect themselves from the lawsuit for false arrest.
The mantra we hear these days would have us believe that only cops and criminals are the ones with guns. This guy is from Pensyltuckey. He’s probably been driving around with that shotgun in his truck for the last year. Over there, that’s normal. When did America’s border end at the Delaware River?
What “documentation” was needed? There is no such thing as registration for a pump-action shotgun. Did the officer just like the shotgun?
I think if the guy can show documentation that he can carry this firearm then there is no issue here. The police should have just asked for a permit and if he had one they should have just let him be on his way.
I think the officer was right to check him if the gun has a registration. Personally if you do not have papers to back up your gun then you should not be carrying it around.