A Columbia County man who is a felon was arrested Tuesday night in Luzerne County for unlawful possession of a firearm.

Kidder Township Police Sgt./Detective Neil Yurchak said the department announced the arrest of Joshua Grasley, 47, of Berwick, following a traffic stop near the intersection of routes 940 and 534 in White Haven.

Around 9 p.m., Kidder Township officer Mason Moran was on patrol when he was alerted by the Automated License Plate reader equipped in his patrol unit that a silver Toyota Camry was operating with an expired vehicle registration.

A traffic stop was conducted, and contact was made with Grasley. A records check was then completed on Grasley, which said that he did not possess a valid driver’s license.

During the contact with Grasley, officers detected indications of criminal activity. Based on those observations, officers conducted a search of the vehicle and seized two assault rifles and three handguns, along with several rounds of ammunition, and drugs.

A records check confirmed that Grasley was a felon and prohibited from possessing any firearms.

“Thanks to the alert actions of our officers, illegally possessed firearms have been removed from our streets,” Yurchak said. “Our department remains committed to proactive policing to ensure the safety of our community.”

Grasley faces charges of persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer firearms; firearms not to be carried without a license; possession of a controlled substance; possession of drug paraphernalia; and several summary traffic violations.

He was taken into custody and transported to the Carbon County Correctional Facility in lieu of $100,000 straight bail.