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AHOSKIE – A local man from Lewiston Woodville was arrested near here July 19 for having an altered weapon in his possession.

Additional investigation following the arrest revealed that the weapon was reported stolen in Goldsboro.

Jalen Quashon Simmons, age 29, is charged with one count each of possession of weapon of mass destruction and possession of a stolen firearm.

According to Hertford County Sheriff Dexter Hayes, HCSO Sgt. B. McNair, K-9 Rocco, and Deputy K. Brown were on patrol July 19 on NC 42 West outside of Ahoskie. The deputies conducted a traffic stop on a 2007 Toyota passenger car for expired tags.

During the roadside traffic stop, McNair observed a firearm inside the vehicle. At that point, deputies detained the driver and the firearm was removed from the vehicle.

Hayes said the Glock 23 Gen 5 handgun had a high-capacity magazine and an illegal switch attached to it. The switch is designed to allow the weapon to fire automatically instead of semi-automatically as it was originally designed to do.

Hayes praised the work of McNair, Brown, and K-9 Rocco for taking an illegal weapon off the street.