A Bristol Borough man was arrested and charged earlier this month with carrying an unlicensed firearm, fleeing and three driving related offenses after he was found sleeping at busy morning intersection.
According to court records the incident occurred on he morning of June 10 when Bristol Police Officer on the the 7 pm to 7 am shift was sitting in a traffic line at the intersection of Route 13 and Bath Street with three other vehicles.
When the traffic light switched from red to green, two vehicles pulled around it while driving away while the officer pulled up behind the sitting vehicle, activating his vehicle’s lights. Upon approaching the vehicle, according to court records, the officer said the driver, Kirk Mowatt, 55 sleeping at the wheel with the car running and his foot on the brake.
After knocking and yelling loudly several times, Mowatt woke up, said Police, shutting the vehicle off as Police requested. Mowatt told the responding officer, he was “ok” he was coming from work as he was searching for his license Police asked him to furnish.
Mowatt briefly “pretended” to look for his license then placed his vehicle back into drive, speeding away at a high rate of speed, Police said.
Police pursued Mowatt who raced down Bath St to Otter Street, making a right hand turn and them a second right hand turn onto Linden Street, the criminal complaint alleges, losing the fleeing driving momentarily, relocating him, in an alley between on Swain and Linden St’s.
A second officer arrived on scene behind a home on the 570 block of Swain with Police telling Mowatt he was under arrest. Initially he resisted the second officer’s intervention said Police in court records.
The officer who initiated the contact patted Mowatt down, finding a 9 mm pistol in the right ankle area of his pants. Mowatt told Police he father who recently passed away left him the firearm, but he is not licensed to carry a concealed gun. Police also discovered during the pat down a glassine bag with a green leafy substance contained within it and that his drivers license is suspended, according to Police.
Mowatt was charged and released by Police and will be summoned to court for a preliminary hearing on July 20.
Editors Note: The firearm charge noted in the court records is cited as non-criminal although listed as a misdemeanor charge.
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