Haverhill Police, State Troopers Recover Two Loaded Guns During Traffic Stop, Five Arrested

Massachusetts State Police. (File photograph.)

Four men and a woman were arrested by Haverhill Police early Tuesday morning after State Police stopped an SUV in Railroad Square and found two loaded guns under the back seats.

State Trooper Patrick McCrave, assigned to the Newbury Barracks, was patrolling in downtown Haverhill just after midnight when he found a black 2013 Infiniti JX35 to be in violation of motor vehicle laws.

The driver, 19-year-old Nestor Gonzalez, failed to provide a registration and told McCrave he left it at home. While performing a warrant check, McCrave noticed three men in the backseat were not wearing seatbelts.

When McCrave and Trooper Christopher Ryan, who responded for backup, removed the occupants from the car, they noticed a loaded Taurus .44 caliber revolver and a loaded 9mm Smith & Wesson semi-automatic handgun under the rear seats.

Gonzalez and those riding in the backseat—Juan Marte, 20, and a 17-year-old male, both from Haverhill, and Carlos Rodriguez, 22, of Lawrence—were arrested by Haverhill Police. Lizmarie Lozada, 20, of Lawrence, was riding in the front seat and was also arrested. All are expected to face charges of unlawful possession of a firearm, in addition to motor vehicle violation charges for the driver and seatbelt violations for those in the backseat.