How did a man and a woman end up in a stolen vehicle with a gun, a bottle of whiskey, a caged rattlesnake and some radioactive uranium on a Wednesday morning?
Stephen Jennings is charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, transporting an open container of liquor, operating a vehicle with a suspended license, and failure to carry security verification form. Rachael Rivera is charged with possession of a firearm after a former felony conviction.
The traffic stop was made at 11 a.m. in Guthrie, OK because the tag was expired. Jennings was in the driver’s seat, Rivera in the passenger seat, and in the backseat, a pet Timber rattlesnake in a terrarium.
At about the same time Jennings told officers he had a gun in console, police learned the Ford they were driving was reported stolen.
“So now he’s got a rattlesnake, a stolen vehicle, firearm, and somebody under arrest,” said Guthrie Police Sgt. Anthony Gibbs.
Police also found an open bottle of Kentucky Deluxe next to the gun. To top it all off, a search of the vehicle revealed a canister of radioactive powdered uranium.
“When that happens of course, we call in a company that deals with that specifically and it’s taken safely into possession,” Sgt. Gibbs said. “The uranium is the wild card in that situation.”
The uranium hasn’t resulted in charges. Guthrie police are still trying to figure out exactly what the suspects were going to use it for. There are no charges from the rattlesnake either.
“It happens to be rattlesnake season at the time, so he can be in possession of this rattlesnake because he has a valid lifetime hunting and fishing license,” Sgt. Gibbs said.
Jennings remains jailed in Logan County.
