Convicted Felon Arrested On Gun, Drug Charges: Meriden Police

MERIDEN, CT — A convicted felon was arrested Thursday after police said he was found to be in the possession of drugs and a loaded gun.

Members of the Crime Suppression Unit received information Thursday of a man selling drugs in an apartment complex parking lot on the east side of the city, according to police.

Police said the man, who was identified as Jean Carlos Perez, was found driving an unregistered vehicle in the area. Authorities tried to conduct a traffic stop on the suspect vehicle, but police said Perez refused to pull over and fled from officers at a high rate of speed.

Perez was later found parked in the same apartment complex parking lot that was earlier reported, and he was arrested, according to police.

Police said Perez was found to be in the possession of 28 capsules of suspected cocaine and the following items were found in his vehicle: 45 grams of cocaine, 33 grams of crack, and a loaded .380 caliber pistol. Perez is a convicted felon and prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition, according to police.

Perez was charged with two counts each of possession of narcotics and possession of narcotics with the intent to sell, and one count each of possession of controlled substance, possession of controlled substance with intent to sell, operating a drug factory, carrying a pistol without a permit, criminal possession of a firearm, weapons in a motor vehicle, interfering with police, reckless driving, operating a motor vehicle with suspended license, misuse of registration plate, and operating an unregistered motor vehicle. He was held in lieu of a $250,000 bond.