An ex-con who’s been on parole for about seven months was arrested after officers allegedly found he had a stolen 9 mm handgun during a traffic stop in Joliet, police said.

Jeremiah Grubbs, 22, of Joliet, was the front seat passenger in the vehicle pulled over in a traffic stop about 9:30 p.m. on Monday near Chicago and Wallace streets on Joliet’s East Side, according to Joliet police Sgt. Dwayne English.

The vehicle had been pulled over for an equipment and seatbelt violation, English said. The driver consented to police searching the vehicle. That led officers to a stolen and loaded 9 mm handgun from a bag previously in Grubbs’ possession, he said.

Darien Chandler, 24, of Joliet, the driver of the vehicle, also was arrested after officers found a pill bottle containing cocaine inside the vehicle. The bottle had Chandler’s name on it, English said.

Grubbs has been on parole since Oct. 15.

On July 20, Grubbs pleaded guilty to aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in the Oct. 14, 2020, shooting in Crest Hill. Grubbs was sentenced to serve at least 50% of a 3-year prison sentence.

In that incident, Grubbs was involved in an argument outside a Crest Hill apartment complex, and he “discharged a handgun and fired the handgun at the direction of an apartment building where other people were present,” prosecutors said.

Dohndray Woods, 24, of Joliet, was charged with attempted first degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm in connection with the Oct. 14, 2020, shooting.

Woods’ case has not yet gone to trial and is scheduled for a June 13 status hearing.

On July 20, Grubbs pleaded guilty to possessing a defaced firearm that was left inside of an SUV involved in the May 26, 2019, crash that left 60-year-old Suos Khloth dead. Grubbs was sentenced to serve at least 50% of a 2-year prison sentence.

In the May 26, 2019 incident, prosecutors said Grubbs “fled the driver’s side of an SUV from a DUI detail. Police found a defaced gun in the abandoned SUV, loaded with 11 rounds. [Defendant] informally stated that the gun was his.”

Anthony Casterberry, 25, of Joliet, was charged in 2019 as the driver of the SUV that crashed into the car driven by Khloth. Before the crash, the vehicle was involved in a high-speed chase with officers, Crest Hill police said.

Casterberry’s case has not yet gone to trial. He’s scheduled for a July 12 status hearing.