Pulled over for allegedly driving a GMC with expired tags, court records show the 23-year-old had a few choice words for the California Highway Patrol officer who discovered a cache of weapons inside and asked if he had a concealed-carry permit.
“What the f— do I need that for?” Orion Alexander Oyedeji said, before disparaging California’s gun restrictions, according to court records.
His comment, which according to documents also included a homophobic slur, came during a routine stop at about 7:15 a.m. on July 4 on Interstate 580 near the Buchanan Street exit in Albany.
After telling Oyedeji that his driver’s license was suspended and that a records check showed he had an outstanding misdemeanor warrant, the officer told him to step out of the car, court records show.
As he did, the officer spotted a Glock handgun in the driver's side door area, CHP officials said. A search of the vehicle then turned up an AR-15 rifle, several large-capacity rifle magazines, a vest with a silver-colored “private security” badge and a gun case.
When questioned, Oyedeji told officers the rifle in the rear of the vehicle belonged to his girlfriend, according to a CHP officer’s probable cause declaration.
Oyedeji told officers that he worked as a security guard and was headed to a shooting range but acknowledged that his job did not require him to carry an AR-15, according to the declaration.
Oyedeji, who had no home address listed in jail or court records, was arrested and booked into Santa Rita Jail shortly after 9 p.m.
Prosecutors filed charges against Oyedeji on July 8, including felony and misdemeanor counts of carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle and a misdemeanor count of carrying a loaded firearm in public.
The filing also includes allegations that he had ammunition readily available for the concealed firearm and that he was armed with or used a weapon. He was also held on the outstanding warrant out of Contra Costa County.