Masked teen arrested in Rockford with loaded gun and defaced serial number

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Police chased a masked teen seen walking in the roadway on Sunday and arrested him after a loaded handgun with a defaced serial number was found on his person.

According to the Rockford Police Department, officers with the Specialized Community Oriented Policing Enforcement (SCOPE) team were at work in the are of 18th Street and 10th Avenue at 11:50 p.m. on Sunday when they saw the 15-year-old in the street, wearing a mask.

Officers attempted to make contact with the suspect but he ran and was later apprehended, police said.

The teen, who now faces charges of Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, Possession of a Firearm with a Defaced Serial Number, No Valid Firearm Owner’s Identification, and Walking in a Roadway, was booked into Rockford’s Juvenile Detention Center.