Police: Atwater man arrested after officers find knife, meth pipe

A routine probation search ended Wednesday in Atwater with a 31-year-old man behind bars after officers found a knife and a methamphetamine pipe, the Atwater Police Department reported.

Mike R. Munoz was booked into the Merced County Jail on suspicion of being in possession of a dagger and violating his probation, Lt. Samuel Joseph told the Sun-Star.

Munoz has been on probation in Merced County since May 2015 when he was convicted of theft and receiving stolen property. He was arrested again in December after investigators found him in possession of drug paraphernalia, according to jail records.

Atwater police officers were assisting Merced County Probation Department officers on Wednesday at a home in the 2600 block of Atwater Boulevard. Officers spotted Munoz inside the home and asked him to step outside to check him for weapons because he was on probation, Joseph said.

Munoz told police he was armed with a knife, which they found in his waistband, under his shirt and jacket, officers said.

The knife was described by a police as a having a fixed blade, nearly 6 inches long. Police also found a pipe believed to have been used for smoking methamphetamine, Joseph said.

Munoz remained in custody Wednesday evening without bail.

This story was originally published March 16, 2016 at 5:51 PM with the headline "Police: Atwater man arrested after officers find knife, meth pipe."