TEWKSBURY — A Townsend man found passed out inside a car at a gas station parking lot on Friday morning was arrested on multiple gun charges after police said they uncovered a loaded handgun inside the vehicle.
James Polowski, 29, who is allegedly unlicensed to carry a gun, is accused of possessing a Taurus .40-caliber firearm, which had its serial number “grinded off,” according to a Tewksbury Police Department press release.
Police said they were called to the Circle K gas station parking lot on Andover Street at about 10:50 a.m. Friday for reports of “two individuals nodding off who appeared to be under the influence of drugs” while sitting in a Nissan sedan.
A man — identified as Polowski — was found by police at the scene sleeping in the driver’s seat, while a woman was asleep in the front passenger seat. According to police, they spotted a glass pipe “consistent with pipes used to smoke crack” in plain view inside the car, which police said was registered to the sleeping woman’s ex-husband.
During an ensuing search of the vehicle, police said they discovered a firearm and a magazine loaded with nine rounds inside a backpack. Upon closer examination, police said it was determined that the serial number had been grinded off the weapon.
Police charged Polowski with carrying a loaded firearm without a license, receiving a firearm with a defaced serial number and possession of ammunition without a firearm identification card.
The passenger in the vehicle, who police said was a 36-year-old Townsend woman, was allowed to leave the scene without any criminal charges. Since her driver’s license is currently suspended, police said the car was impounded.
Polowski will be arraigned on Monday in Lowell District Court.
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