Ex-DOD Worker Arrested At Hudson Mall, Had Weapons Cache In His Home: Authorities

A man arrested for wearing a law enforcement uniform and carrying a gun at the Hudson Mall in Jersey City on Tuesday was reportedly a former Department of Defense (DOD) employee who lost his job a decade ago.

When an off-duty police officer spotted him at the mall, Julio Concepcion, 59, of Jersey City, was reportedly wearing a “police-type uniform” and a gun in a holster with a badge emblem on his shirt reading “U.S. Police,” authorities stated.

Police later recovered several items in the trunk of Concepcion’s car, including a second handgun, hollow-point bullets and two bullet-proof vests,” NJ.com reported.

It is believed that Concepcion was working at a DOD facility associated with Fort Monmouth in Eatontown, and he was part of a downsizing in 2006, NJ.com stated.

When police re-arrested Concepcion at his home after he skipped a court appearance on Wednesday, officers found an assortment of legally registered firearms that included 46 rifles and 12 handguns belonging to his brother, who also lives at the residence.

Police also found an allegedly illegally modified, pump action 12-gauge shotgun at the residence, prosecutors said.

"Clearly based on the facts and description of the incident, the court has concerns about the mental state of Mr. Concepcion," Hudson County Superior Court Judge Edward DeFazio said during a Thursday court hearing. "We are concerned on whether he is a danger to himself and others… The fact that he was in a public place with a loaded handgun is very disturbing."

Sign up for Patch email newsletters here.