Police: Man arrested after Elgin officers spot him loading a handgun

A man is facing weapon charges after he was spotted by police officers while loading a handgun in northwest suburban Elgin, police said.

Tavante L. D. Scales, 24, has been charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a Class 4 felony, according to Elgin police.

About 10:30 p.m., members of the Elgin Police Department’s Unit for Special Assignment team were conducting surveillance on an unrelated investigation in the 1200 block of Fleetwood Drive, when they spotted someone leaving an apartment building “with what appeared to be a handgun,” police said.

Police said he then “proceeded to charge the firearm by loading a round into the chamber as he entered the driver’s seat of a nearby vehicle.”

As the officers approached, they saw the man trying to toss the handgun under the vehicle’s front passenger seat, police said. He was taken into custody without incident.

Scales, who lives in Elgin, appeared in bond court in Kane County on Sunday and was released on his own recognizance, police said.