NORRISTOWN — A Philadelphia man was sent to prison on gun and drug charges that were filed against him after a traffic stop along the Schuylkill Expressway in Lower Merion Township.
Jovan A. Perry, 36, of the 300 block of Gilham Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 10 to 20 years in a state correctional institution on charges of person not to possess a firearm, possession with intent to deliver marijuana or THC (the primary compound found in marijuana), possession of marijuana or THC and possession of drug paraphernalia in connection with an August 2022 incident.
The sentence was imposed by Judge William R. Carpenter.
A jury convicted Perry of the charges during a trial in August.
The investigation began about 1:39 p.m. Aug. 31, 2022, when state police patrolling westbound Route 76 in the area of City Avenue in Lower Merion observed a silver Cadillac sedan operated by Perry making unsafe lane changes and conducted a traffic stop, according to a criminal complaint.
“I immediately smelled the odor of marijuana emanating from the vehicle,” state police Trooper Anthony Lannutti alleged in the arrest affidavit. “While speaking with Perry multiple indicators of criminal activity were observed and a consent search was requested and denied by Perry.”
Police then requested the assistance of a K9 and the dog alerted to the odor of narcotics at the vehicle, according to court papers.
The vehicle was towed to the state police barracks and a warrant was obtained to search the vehicle.
That search yielded a black Taurus 9mm handgun that was confirmed to be stolen out of Philadelphia County and authorities found 12 rounds of 9mm ammunition in the magazine inserted in the firearm, police alleged.
Suspected marijuana, suspected THC edibles, a vape cartridge containing suspected THC oil and “a large amount of packaging materials and paraphernalia commonly associated with marijuana” were also found in the vehicle, police said.
According to testimony, the marijuana weighed less than one pound.
“Based on my training and experiences as a law enforcement officer, combined with the significant amount of contraband that was seized, I firmly believe that the seized narcotics were meant for distribution,” Lannutti alleged.
With the charges, police alleged Perry had a prior criminal history that prohibited him from possessing a handgun.
Assistant District Attorney Courtney McMonagle handled the case. Defense lawyer Michael Walker represented Perry during the court proceedings.