Press Release

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Judd Sanson was arraigned on charges of criminal possession of a weapon and other crimes after he was stopped by police in East Elmhurst for having a covering over his license plate. Police officers allegedly discovered an arsenal of weapons in the car including a loaded 9 mm semiautomatic pistol, ammunition, knives, a machete, stun gun, whip, a body armor vest with an NYPD patch inside it, an MTA vest and a baton with writing on it that read “Left Me No Choice.”

District Attorney Katz said: “We must protect our city. When a person is pulled over and possesses a loaded semi-automatic gun, more than 170 total rounds of ammunition, multiple weapons, body armor, an NYPD patch and an MTA vest, just a few blocks from the airport, we are very concerned. This investigation is ongoing and I thank the NYPD for apprehending the defendant on a routine traffic stop before anything else happened.”

Sanson, 27, of Jamaica Avenue in Hollis, was arraigned on a criminal complaint charging him with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree; four  counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree; 10 counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree; unlawful possession of pistol or revolver ammunition; unlawful use of police uniform of emblem; and issuance, number, location and condition of vehicle plates.

Sanson faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted. Criminal Court Judge Julieta Lozano ordered the defendant to return to court June 17.

According to the charges:

• On June 12, at approximately 1:25 a.m., Sanson was observed at 86^th Street and 23^rd Avenue in East Elmhurst driving a black 2013 Ford Explorer with a black film covering the rear license plate. He was stopped by an NYPD officer who, when he approached the car, saw a black handle protruding from a holster that was strapped to Sanson’s right pants leg.
• Sanson was asked if he had a knife, and he removed a black knife with a black handle from the holster and placed it near the center console of the vehicle.
• Police observed and recovered a black Glock semiautomatic 9 mm pistol loaded with 12 rounds of ammunition from inside a holster which was under the driver’s seat.
• Also recovered were nine loaded magazines, each capable of being loaded into a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol, and 127 rounds of 9 mm ammunition from inside a bag on the rear passenger seat.
• Of the nine magazines, four were large capacity feeding devices.
• Also recovered were:
  • 40 loose 9 mm rounds of ammunition from inside a plastic case in the car’s trunk.
  • A black baton with a silver-colored blade taped to the end of the baton which was hanging from the ceiling of the left side of the car.
  • A black whip hanging from the ceiling of the right side of the car
  • A set of silver-colored handcuffs hanging from the ceiling of the middle of the car
  • A black expandable baton with the words “Left Me No Choice,” “You Gon Learn Today” and an Arabic expression that means, “Ask In God For Forgiveness”
  • A Sabre S-1009 stun gun inside a bag on the rear left passenger seat
  • A black machete inside a bag on the rear left passenger seat
  • Two black and silver-colored switch blade knives in a bag on the rear passenger seat
  • A black colored knife in a bag on the rear passenger seat
  • A silver-colored hatchet with a black handle from a bag on the rear passenger seat
  • A body armor vest with an NYPD patch inside a pouch on the front of the vest

Assistant District Attorney Dylan Nesturrick of the District Attorney’s Career Criminal Major Crime Bureau is prosecuting the case, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michael Whitney, Bureau Chief, and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney of Major Crimes Shawn Clark.