In a recent encounter that brings to light the saga of poor decisions, Alhambra Police detailed the arrest of a Downey man on their Facebook page. The post recounts how officers, upon carrying out a traffic stop near Raymond Ave. and Main St., encountered Kevin Oropeza, whose lack of forethought was evident.
According to the Alhambra Police Department's account, Oropeza initially failed to comply with the traffic stop, and when he finally did, it became clear that he was operating the vehicle without a driver's license or any form of identification. Compounding his troubles was the discovery of an "unregistered, loaded firearm with a large-capacity magazine" surreptitiously placed between the front passenger seat and door. Oropeza claimed ignorance of the firearm's presence, citing having just retrieved his car from a wrapping service.
The explanation did little to address the fact that the vehicle's registration had expired back in June; Oropeza's spate of oversights did not inspire confidence in his explanations. Alhambra Police onion-peeled the situation, revealing further that Oropeza was an acknowledged active gang member. This detail, coupled with the aforementioned infractions, led to his arrest and subsequent booking at the APD Jail, reportedly without incident.
"Tell us you didn’t think this through without telling us you didn’t think this through," reads the tongue-in-cheek description on the department’s social media post. Even with the hint of levity, the situation underscores a real issue of responsibility, particularly when handling deadly weapons. The Alhambra Police did not mince words when they checked the veracity of Oropeza's claims, stating, "But one thing he did have was an unregistered, loaded firearm with a large-capacity magazine wedged in between the front passenger seat and the door. He claimed he didn’t know it was there, but we checked, and cars don’t usually come with those accessories." The implication was clear: common sense was not in the driver’s seat at the time of this traffic stop.
