Wild Ride In Stafford Leads to Large Magazine/Gun Charges

STAFFORD, CT — A wild ride in Stafford over the weekend led to a Springfield man being arrested on hefty gun charges, state police said. Drugs were also involved, according to a report.

Ruben Barrero, 22, was charged with 11 crimes for the incident:

• Carrying a dangerous weapon
• The illegal sale or purchase of a large-capacity magazine
• Illegal posession of a weapon in a motor vehicle
• Illegally altering a firearm
• Carrying a pistol without a permit
• Possession of less than a half-ounces of marijuana
• Narcotics posession
• Improper parking
• Unsafe passing
• Driving under the influence
• Evading responsibility

At 3:05 a.m. on Saturday, Barrero, of Springfield, was driving a 2010 Lexus ES east along the Route 190-Route 32 overlay in the area of Prospect Street in Stafford, according to a report. He passed a 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee being driven by a 51-year-old Storrs woman in a no-passing zone, then cut in too soon and hit it, according to a report.

The woman was able to alert state police via a 911 call and troopers were able to catch up with him and stop the Lexus, according to a report.

A subsequent search of the Lexus uncovered drugs and a gun with a high-capacity magazine, according to a report.

The case was assigned a $300,000 bond and Barrero is due in court on March 13, according to a report.

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