2 men charged with having 45 grams of marijuana inside car in Evanston

Two Chicago men are facing charges after 45 grams of marijuana was found inside their vehicle during a traffic stop Sunday night in north suburban Evanston.

At 7:21 p.m., patrol officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle in the 600 block of South Boulevard because the driver was not wearing a seat belt, according to a statement from Evanston police.

Officers smelt a strong odor of marijuana from inside the car, police said. As officers were checking the vehicle they found that the backseat opened up to the trunk, which had a loaded Bryco Arms 9mm handgun inside.

In addition to the gun, officers found a book bag containing 30 individual plastic bags of marijuana totaling 26 grams, police said. The front seat passenger, Carlos Turner, also had 21 individual bags containing 19 grams of marijuana concealed in his pants.

Turner and the driver, Jerome Ames, were taken into custody and taken to the Evanston Police Department.

Turner, 22, was charged with one felony count of unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, police said. Ames, 29, who is currently on parole, was charged with one count of violation of his parole after the Illinois Department of Corrections issued a warrant for his arrest.

No charges have been filed in connection with the gun pending results from the crime laboratory, police said.