Local man arrested after Anderson search warrants uncover multiple firearms, ammo

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article indicated the suspect was charged as being a felon in possession of weapons and ammunition. However, it has since been learned that the suspect was prohibited from owning or possessing firearms and ammunition due to being a drug addicted person.

ANDERSON, Calif., — Authorities say an Anderson man was arrested after a pair of search warrants led to the discovery and seizure of seven rifles and ammunition Tuesday evening, Jan. 4.

The search warrants were the result of information gathered during a traffic stop earlier in the week that a known drug addict was in possession of weapons, according to officials.

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Based on information developed after the traffic stop, members of the Anderson Police Department’s Problem Oriented Policing Unit authored and obtained a pair of search warrants for a private residence on Anderson’s Church Street and a storage unit on Banigan Road in the unincorporated area of Anderson.

A pair of Anderson search warrants led to the discovery and seizure of seven rifles and ammunition. Anderson PD photo

The search warrants revealed the alleged suspect, 43-year-old Steven Matthew Mello, was in possession of seven firearms and a small amount of methamphetamine.

Based on their investigation and findings, POP Unit officers arrested Mello and he was later booked into the Shasta County Jail in Redding on suspicion of being a prohibited person in possession of firearms and ammunition and being an addicted person in possession of firearms.

SEE OTHER RECENT ANDERSON AREA NEWS:

Redding man arrested after found in stolen car outside Anderson Walmart

GPS tracking equipped laptop leads to Anderson burglar’s arrest in Red Bluff

Online jail records indicate he was released about four hours after being booked after posting $10,000 bail or bond and is no longer in custody.



Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).

Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.

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