Cocaine, Handgun Found After Brick Man Pulled Over: Police

BRICK, NJ — A Brick Township man is facing drug and weapons charges after a motor vehicle stop led to the discovery of cocaine and a defaced handgun, Brick Township police said Wednesday.

Kayshon D. Johnson was arrested Jan. 8, along with his passengers, Raul Mendez Cervantes Jr. of Lakewood and an unidentified juvenile, Police Chief David Forrester said in a news release.

Officers in the Street Crimes Unit saw a vehicle that was behaving suspiciously in the area of Lanes Mill Road and it was followed and pulled over in Lakewood for multiple traffic violations, the chief said.

A search of the vehicle, assisted by the Ocean County Sheriff's K-9 Unit, turned up 39 grams of crack cocaine, a small quantity of soft cocaine, and a loaded, defaced .40 caliber Ruger handgun with its serial number scratched off, he said. Officers also discovered additional evidence, including multiple prescription ledger blanks, a digital scale used for weighing narcotics and another loaded magazine found in the glove compartment, he said.

Johnson and Cervantes were arrested and taken to the Brick Police Department for booking and processing, then taken to the Ocean County Jail in Toms River.

Johnson has been charged with distribution of controlled dangerous substances; two counts of possession of controlled dangerous substances; possession of drug paraphernalia; possession of a weapon with a controlled dangerous substance; unlawful possession of a weapon; possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose; certain persons not to possess a weapon; possession of a defaced firearm; endangering the welfare of a minor and various traffic violations, the chief said.

Cervantes was arrested in connection with several outstanding warrants out of multiple jurisdictions, he said.

"This incident highlights the ongoing dedication of the Brick Township Police Department and its law enforcement partners to combat drug trafficking and illegal firearms possession in our communities," Forrester said.