Weapons recovered, 2 arrested after Ford Heights traffic stop

Two men were arrested and one of them is facing weapons charges after they were pulled over Saturday afternoon in south suburban Ford Heights.

Tyrail Simpson, 20, was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, while 20-year-old Karlos Rucker was arrested on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear on a resisting/obstructing a peace officer charge, according to a statement from the Cook County sheriff’s office.

About 3:25 p.m., a sheriff’s patrol officer stopped a red 2002 Mitsubishi Galant in the 1500 block of East Congress Lane in Ford Heights because the vehicle’s registered owner had an active warrant, police said.

As the officer approached the vehicle, he smelled marijuana and alcohol, and a half empty bottle of vodka was found in the vehicle, police said. Rucker was driving the vehicle, while Simpson was a passenger.

Simpson attempted to run away during the traffic stop, but the officer apprehended him a short distance from the vehicle, police said. He was found to be in possession of two weapons, a .40-caliber Smith and Wesson with a loaded magazine and a loaded .22-caliber Walther P22 with a laser sight attached and a loaded magazine. The Walther P22 had been reported stolen from West Virginia.

Simpson, of Chicago Heights, has been ordered held at the Cook County Jail on a $20,000 bond, court records show. Rucker, of South Holland, was ordered held on a $3,000 bond. They are both due back in court Jan. 24.