Merced police: 3 gang members arrested in traffic stop
A routine tail light violation traffic stop ended early Sunday in Merced with three suspected gang members in jail and the seizure of a loaded firearm, the Merced Police Department reported.
Police stopped a vehicle around 1:43 a.m. in the 1500 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Officers spotted open alcoholic beverages inside the car, police said in a news release.
Investigators found a loaded .38-caliber special revolver while searching the car, officers said.
Angel Moreno, 20, Marcelo Salazar, 20, and the driver, Martha Moss, 19, were arrested on suspicion of weapon violations and gang enhancements, police said.
Moss posted bail and was released from custody a few hours later, according to Merced County jail records.
Moreno and Salazar remained in custody on about $70,000 bail each, records show.
Records show Moss was arrested in April last year on suspicion of resisting or delaying a peace officer, a misdemeanor. Moreno was convicted of misdemeanor battery in January 2015, jail records show.
Anyone with any information regarding this case is asked to call Sgt. Robert Solis at 209-385-4703 or the Merced PD Tip Line at 209-385-4725. The public can send information via anonymous text messages by dialing 847411 and including the word “Comvip” as the keyword in the message.
This story was originally published January 24, 2016 at 10:39 AM with the headline "Merced police: 3 gang members arrested in traffic stop."