Joliet man with gun parked in front of fire hydrant, tried to dupe officers: cops

joliet — A 21-year-old man landed in jail after he parked in front of a fire hydrant and responding officers discovered he was carrying a loaded 9 mm handgun with a defaced serial number, police said.

At close to 11 p.m. Saturday, officers arrived at the 500 block of South Des Plaines Street for a parking complaint, Joliet police Sgt. Dwayne English said.

When officers arrived, they saw a vehicle parked in front of a fire hydrant, English said.

Officers saw the driver leave the vehicle and walk to a nearby alley, he said.

“Officers made contact with the driver who then attempted to provide a false name,” English said.

Officers identified the driver as Earnest Anderson, 21, of Joliet, English said. Anderson attempted to run from officers but he was immediately apprehended, he said.

“As officers placed Anderson into custody, he indicated that he possessed a handgun,” English said.

Officers recovered a loaded 9 mm handgun from Anderson’s waist, English said. The serial number on the weapon appeared to have been defaced, he said.

Anderson was jailed shortly after 12:30 a.m. Sunday. His bond was set at $30,000. He’ll need to post 10% of that amount for his release from jail.