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Awaiting court on one gun charge, 18-year-old arrested on another
ILLEGAL GUN CHARGE
A loaded Ruger 9mm handgun was found in a vehicle occupied by four individuals on Sunday night – one of which had already been released from custody on firearms-related charges.
JASON CAMPBELL
The Bulletin
Published: Mar 15, 2022, 7:26 AM

An 18-year-old Manteca resident that was already awaiting court proceedings on firearms-related charges was arrested on Sunday for even more firearms-related charges.

James Gonsalves, 18, was one of four occupants inside of a Honda that was stopped by Manteca Police Sunday night near the intersection of Whitmore Avenue and Main Street for an equipment violation.

Officers that approached the vehicle immediately noted that there was cannabis in plain sight – a violation of California law similar to that of an open container of alcohol which serves as probable cause for a search for the vehicle.

When officers asked the driver if there was anything illegal inside of the vehicle, he reportedly told the officer that there wasn’t and consented to a search which yielded a loaded Ruger 9mm handgun – resulting in the arrest of all four occupants of the vehicle.

Gonsalves was arrested for being a felon in possession of a handgun as well as committing a felony while on release from custody. He is currently being held in custody at the San Joaquin County Jail on $275,000 bail and is due to appear in the Manteca branch of the San Joaquin County Superior Court on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m.

Andres Donatelli, a 20-year-old Lathrop resident, was also arrested for being a felon in possession of a handgun and several other firearms-related charges. Because he was already on probation, Donatelli picked up an additional charge of committing a felony while on probation and is currently being held without bail at the county jail. He is scheduled to appear alongside Gonsalves on Wednesday in court in Manteca to answer to the charges.

Roman Fuston, 20, and Dennis Crum, 19, both of Manteca, were also arrested for firearms-related charges and booked into the San Joaquin County Jail before being subsequently released.

The incident came less than a week after the Manteca Police announced that they are taking an illegally possessed gun off the street every other day in 2022.

To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.