STONEHAM — On Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025, at around 5:54 p.m., Stoneham Police Officer Stephen Chatelle was patrolling the area of Main and Williams streets when he ran a vehicle’s license plate on a hunch.
According to a statement from Stoneham’s Police Chief James O’Connor, after running the license plate, Officer Chatelle discovered that the vehicle’s registered owner, Louis Sousa, 33, of Medford, had an active warrant out of Somerville District Court.
Officer Chatelle stopped the vehicle a short distance away, confirmed that Sousa was the driver, and placed him under arrest on the outstanding warrant.
During a subsequent inventory search of the vehicle, Officer Chatelle located a loaded Ruger handgun.
Louis Sousa was arrested and charged with the following:
- Carrying a Firearm Without a Firearms Identification Card (FID)
- Improper Storage of a Firearm
- Possession of Ammunition Without an FID
- Carrying a Loaded Firearm Without a License
Sousa was arraigned Wednesday in Woburn District Court.
The arrest marked the second time this week that Stoneham police seized an illegally possessed firearm, Chief O’Connor said. Another firearm was recovered earlier in an unrelated investigation.
“I would like to commend the proactive police work of Officer Chatelle, who’s keen eye made Stoneham safer by taking a dangerous illegally possessed firearm off the streets,” said Chief O’Connor.
