A man arrested in South Berkeley earlier this month — who police say had cash, a digital scale, marijuana and a loaded handgun — is scheduled to enter a plea in an Alameda County courtroom next week.
Melvin Lugene Holman, 20, of Fresno, was driving through Berkeley, in the 1500 block of Oregon Street, in a white Mercedes on May 23 when a Berkeley Police officer stopped him shortly before 7 p.m. in connection with “vehicle code violations,” according to court documents.
The officer, Kevin Kleppe, wrote in one of the documents that he smelled marijuana coming from the Mercedes during the traffic stop, which led to a search. Kleppe said he found a glass jar holding 6.81 grams of marijuana, as well as “two I-phone cell phones (containing text messages indicating that Holman was selling marijuana), a digital scale with marijuana residue on it, packaging materials, and a loaded SIG Sauer semi-automatic handgun.”
Kleppe wrote that Holman also was carrying nearly $800 in cash. After police advised Holman of his rights, Kleppe continued, “Holman stated that he only sold marijuana to his friends and claimed ownership of the gun that he just bought.”
According to the Alameda County sheriff’s department, Holman has been charged with two felonies: possession of marijuana for sale and carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle.
He is scheduled for an attorney and plea hearing June 4 in Dept. 112 of the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in downtown Oakland. He no longer is in custody.
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