3-year-old found in possession of loaded gun during routine traffic stop

Chicago police officers were surprised on Wednesday during a routine traffic stop when they found a 3-year-old in the backseat was holding a loaded handgun.

Police has originally pulled the vehicle over when they noticed two children in the back of the crowded car who did not have seat belts or car seats.

According to the Chicago Tribune, when the officer approached the vehicle, he saw the 19-year-old Queshawn King, making “furtive” downward movements to the three-year-old. As the officer approached the car he noticed that the driver was nervous and asked him to step out of the car.

As the police officer approached the front passenger side of the car he saw the child holding a handgun. The officer tried to retrieve the 9 mm weapon the girl threw it to the floor. The loaded weapon did not discharge.

King was one of the six people inside the of the car, the occupants also included the 3-year-olds mother and grandmother and an unidentified male driver. The other occupants told police that the gun did not belong to them.

King is being held on a $50,000 bond. He is charged with felony unlawful use of a weapon for having a loaded weapon inside the vehicle, misdemeanor endangering the life and health of a child, and misdemeanor possession of a firearm without a valid FOID card.

Source:
Chicago Tribune
WGN News