Hunter
12/21/20
An alleged road rage incident has led to the arrest of an Iowa City man on drug and firearms charges.
Police say that on February 14th at 1:45pm, they responded to a report of road rage where the suspect, identified as 27-year-old Charles Tate of Scott Park Road, threatened another motorist with a handgun.
The motorist got Tate’s license plate number and provided it to officers, who tracked him down at his residence. When he answered the door, police say they could smell the odor of marijuana and could see a handgun in plain view in the living room. The residence was locked down as a search warrant was obtained.
At 4:45 that same day, police executed the warrant, reportedly finding two firearms, nearly $1600 in cash, marijuana packaged into bags, a digital scale, and about 30 pills of ecstasy. After associated vehicles were searched, officers say they recovered nearly a pound of marijuana.
One of the firearms was discovered on the couch, with the other under a couch cushion. Both had loaded extended length magazines. After being Mirandized, Tate reportedly said that he routinely places a gun under the couch cushions, and said he must have forgotten it there. One of the handguns, a Ruger pistol, had the serial number obliterated from it. Technicians at the Cedar Rapids Police Department crime lab were able to restore the number, and tracked the sale to Galena Illinois in 2012. The original purchaser was contacted, and he wasn’t aware the gun was gone. He said the last time he remembered seeing the gun was June 2019 and since he didn’t sell or give the gun to anyone assumed it had been stolen.
The arrest report indicates that Tate’s three juvenile children live with him and have constant access to the living room.
A warrant for Tate’s arrest was issued on December 10th after the investigation was completed; he was taken into custody Sunday evening. He’s charged with Trafficking in Stolen Weapons, two drug stamp violations, two controlled substance violations, and three counts of Child Endangerment. If convicted on all charges, Tate could be sentenced to up to 47 years in prison.