Virginia Man Arrested at Laurel Car Rally With Stolen, Loaded Texas Firearm

A loaded handgun reported stolen out of Texas was recovered from a Woodbridge, Virginia, man's vehicle after Prince George's County police broke up an illegal car rally on Cherry Lane in unincorporated Laurel late Friday night, leading to his arrest on multiple firearm charges.

Officers from PGPD's District VI, based out of the Beltsville station, responded to the 14400 block of Cherry Lane around 11:30 p.m. on March 13 after receiving reports of an illegal gathering. When they arrived, they found roughly 100 vehicles participating in the rally. The crowd dispersed once officers moved in, but police stopped one nearby vehicle being driven by Diego Emmanuel Guerra, 20, of Woodbridge.

During the traffic stop, officers found a loaded firearm inside Guerra's car. The weapon had been reported stolen out of Texas. Guerra was arrested, charged with multiple handgun violations including possession of a loaded handgun and possession of a stolen firearm, and transported to the Prince George's County Department of Corrections.

Chief Nader of the Prince George's County Police issued a direct warning in the wake of the arrest. "This arrest again reinforces this agency's unwavering message that illegal car rallies are dangerous. In this case, we recovered a gun that had been reported stolen. Do not come into our jurisdiction and take part in these illegal rallies. We intend to continue to make arrests," Nader said.

The Laurel arrest is part of a sustained regional crackdown. In a separate enforcement action tied to a February 21-22 rally in Prince George's County, PGPD and Maryland State Police charged two Pennsylvania men: Blake Miller, 23, of East Berlin, and Gus Roth, 22, of Hanover, following a joint operation with regional law enforcement partners. MSP has also conducted high-visibility patrols across Bowie, Camp Springs, Silver Spring, Upper Marlboro, Chevy Chase, Forestville, and Hanover, with officials reporting they stopped crowds of about 300 in some locations from staging street takeovers involving exhibition driving, roadway shutdowns, and disorderly conduct.

In Camp Springs, troopers arrested Jossel Joan Maldonado Sanabria, 19, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, and a 17-year-old passenger from Falls Church, Virginia, both found in a black Dodge Charger and both charged with possession of a loaded firearm.

The pattern across these arrests, out-of-state participants bringing loaded and stolen weapons into Prince George's County, appears to be driving the department's increasingly aggressive posture toward illegal rallies.