Rhode Island men charged with possession of a stolen firearm
Published on Thursday, August 24, 2023
An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced that two Rhode Island men have been charged in Kent County Superior Court with possession of a stolen gun and other gun-related offenses following their arrests by the Rhode Island State Police (RISP) on February 10, 2023.
On August 3, 2023, the office of the Attorney General charged Jaden Brown (age 23) of Providence and Hassan Almarawi (age 25) of Pawtucket, by way of criminal information, each with one count of transporting a firearm without a license and one count of conspiracy to carry a firearm without a license. Additionally, Jaden Brown was charged with one count of possession of a stolen firearm.
As alleged in the criminal information, on February 10, 2023, at approximately 3:40 a.m., a trooper was traveling on Route 95 South in Warwick when he observed a gray Audi Q7 driving slowly in the middle lane before speeding up and turning off the exit ramp at Jefferson Boulevard. The trooper pursued the Audi and activated his emergency lights to halt the vehicle.
As further alleged, as the trooper approached the vehicle, he observed the passenger (Hassan Almarawi) making reaching movements towards the passenger’s side door and down towards the passenger’s side floor. The trooper ordered the driver (Jaden Brown) and Almawari to show their hands, and they complied. When asked, Brown denied that there were any weapons in the vehicle, but the trooper noticed Almawari glancing at the same location on the passenger’s side floor that he was reaching towards prior.
As alleged, another trooper arrived on scene to assist and at that time, troopers asked both defendants to exit the vehicle and checked them for weapons, finding none. Troopers then checked the vehicle and found a Glock 27, .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun with a laser attachment mounted on it containing a 10 round magazine containing a quantity of ammunition. At that time, troopers placed both defendants under arrest.
As further alleged, troopers ran the Glock’s serial number through the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and discovered it was reported as stolen out of the Holbrook Police Department in Massachusetts.
The defendants were arraigned on August 18, 2023, in Kent County Superior Court and the charges remain pending.
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