A 36-year-old Phoenix man was arrested August 27 on the 1400 block of North 50th Street on suspicion of possession of a weapon, marijuana possession or use and possession or use of drug paraphernalia, according to a police report.
At the the time of the incident the man and another subject were seen going in and out of an abandoned building, according to the report.
There had recently been a series of burglaries of commercial businesses in the area, police reported.
The two men were sitting in front of the vacant business around a car when police approached them, according to the report.
Upon seeing the police the man appeared shocked and suddenly reached into the front passenger seat of the vehicle and removed an unknown object from inside his wallet, police reported.
Officers observed the man reach into the front of his waistband and turned his back on the officers, police reported. He then ran into the building, returning quickly from the building looking nervous and sweaty, according to the report.
The man was placed in handcuffs and the owner of the building allowed officers access into the business where a grey semi-automatic 9mm handgun was located in the bathroom, according to the report.
After the arrest the man said he was in the business to clean with his friend and admitted to hiding the gun, police reported.
He also said he ate a baggie of methamphetamine as he threw the gun in the room, police reported.
He said the gun wasn’t his, he knew he wasn’t supposed to possess a handgun, but he hit it because the other man told him to, according to police.
Search of the vehicle revealed a bag of marijuana and a 6-inch fixed-blade, hunting-style knife, police reported.
The man was transported to Tempe City Jail, where he was booked and held to see a judge, police reported.
Report compiled by Megan Janetsky.
Reach the reporter at megan.janetsky@asu.edu or follow @meganjanetsky on Twitter.
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