A felon who had been seen carrying a rifle outside the Casa Grande Village Apartments on Della Drive was arrested Tuesday evening, Sept. 11.

At 10:11 p.m. someone at the complex dialed 9-1-1 to report seeing Juan Moreno, 43, of Ceres, carrying a weapon as he walked around outside. At the northern end of the parking lot officers spotted Moreno who quickly ran into one of the apartments. Officers formed a perimeter around the apartment. After several minutes Moreno came outside with a woman as they both held fishing poles. Moreno suggested others must have mistaken the fishing pole for a gun, but police weren’t buying the story.

The woman allowed officers to search her apartment where they found a black .22 caliber rifle hidden in a freezer. Moreno was booked for being a felon in possession of a firearm, carrying a loaded firearm by a prior felon, carrying an unregistered firearm and possession of ammunition by a prohibited person.