Police recover loaded gun, drugs during traffic stop

By Elizabeth Larson | Mar 31, 2019
Weapons and drug paraphernalia seized by the Clearlake Police Department during a traffic stop on Friday, March 29, 2019. Photo courtesy of the Clearlake Police Department.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A Clearlake man was arrested Friday after a police officer found him in possession of a loaded gun and drugs during a traffic stop.

Kevin Daniel Berentis, 37, was taken into custody shortly before 2 a.m. on Friday, according to Lake County Jail booking records and a report from the Clearlake Police Department.

Officer Mauricio Barreto conducted the stop, finding Berentis in possession of a .22-caliber rifle in the back seat of his pickup and had a loaded 9 millimeter handgun concealed on his person, police said.

The agency said Berentis also was found to be in possession of suspected methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.

Berentis was booked into the Lake County Jail for several firearms related charges including concealed weapon on his person and in his vehicle, carrying a loaded firearm, possession of a firearm and ammunition by a prohibited person along with drug related charges, police said.

Jail records indicated Berentis remained in custody on Sunday, with bail set at $50,000.

He’s tentatively scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday, based on his booking record.

Kevin Daniel Berentis, 37, of Clearlake, Calif., was arrested on Friday, March 29, 2019, following a traffic stop. Lake County Jail photo.