An 18-year-old El Paso resident was arrested early Tuesday morning when police said he was found in possession of drugs following a traffic accident.
According to an Odessa Police Department report, officers were dispatched to a one-vehicle crash at Andrews Highway and East 45th Street around 1 a.m. Tuesday.
When officers arrived, Christian Gonzales was holding a tobacco vape pen and he had five THC vape pens on his person, the report stated.
When talking to Gonzales, officers said he confessed that after crashing his Volkswagen, he hid a .40 caliber handgun nearby, the report stated. Officers found the gun behind a restaurant and they found Xanax in his car.
According to the report, Gonzales was asked at the Ector County jail if he had any other illegal substances on him and he said no, but he later grabbed a “half bar” of Xanax from his back pocket and swallowed it.
Gonzales was booked on suspicion of unlawful carrying of a weapon, two counts of possession of a controlled substance, two counts of tampering with physical evidence and possession of a prohibited substance in a correctional facility.
He remained in the Ector County jail Wednesday on surety bonds totaling $43,000.
