Newman man arrested after officers say he ditched gun, machete at local park
A 41-year-old man with a history of felony convictions was arrested Friday night at Pioneer Park in Newman after authorities say he attempted to ditch a loaded firearm and a machete while under supervision.
A Newman police officer was patrolling the park around 10 p.m. when he made contact with Enrique Mendoza, a Newman resident known to be on Post Release Community Supervision (PRCS), according to a police statement.
During the encounter, Mendoza was found to be in possession of a live round of ammunition. Surveillance footage later revealed that as the officer approached, Mendoza pulled a loaded, unserialized firearm and a machete from his pants and tried to discard them in different areas of the park, police said.
Mendoza was arrested on suspicion of several felony offenses, including possession of a controlled substance while armed with a loaded firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of a dirk or dagger.
He was booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center.
Additional information, including what type of controlled substance may have been involved, was not immediately available.
