Redwood City man arrested on suspicion of unlawfully firing gun on New Year’s Eve

REDWOOD CITY — A 23-year-old man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of unlawfully firing a gun numerous times on New Year’s Eve and Day, according to authorities.

The incident was reported around 12:20 a.m. on Jan. 1 at an apartment building in the 500 block of Stambaugh Street, the Redwood City Police Department said in a news release Thursday.

Officers arrived to find spent and unspent ammunition, but no suspect, police said.

Following a six-month investigation, the Street Crime Suppression Team identified the suspect as a Redwood City resident.

Police said detectives served a search warrant at the man’s home on Wednesday and recovered a .45-caliber handgun, ammunition, firearm accessories and a fraudulent California identification card.

The handgun was not registered to the suspect or anyone he knew, according to authorities.

Police said detectives later obtained a confession and video of the incident from the man. He was arrested and booked into San Mateo County jail on charges of unlawful discharge of a firearm, carrying a loaded firearm in public and possession of a false ID card.

In the news release, police said celebratory gunfire is “all too common” on New Year’s Eve and Day, and it is “difficult, if not impossible to identify perpetrators.”

“These random and negligent acts are particularly dangerous to the community, as there are typically large numbers of community members out celebrating, just as in this case,” police said, adding that there were children in the area when the shots were fired.