Pickens man arrested on felony possession of a firearm following traffic stop

BUCKHANNON – A Pickens man was arrested after police pulled him over and allegedly discovered he had violated a protective order and was in possession of a firearm, despite being prohibited from carrying or owning one.

Dustin Hull, 34, of Pickens, W.Va., was arrested for violation of a protective order, a misdemeanor, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, a felony. According to the criminal complaint in the Upshur County Magistrate Clerk’s Office filed by investigating officer Deputy Tyler Gordon with the Upshur County Sheriff’s Department, on Saturday, Sept. 14 Gordon observed a black Subaru Impreza traveling north on Route 20 in Buckhannon.

Gordon saw a defective brake light displayed by the vehicle and subsequently initiated a traffic stop on Light Chapel Hill Road. According to the report, Gordon identified the female driver and the passenger, Hull.

Upon removing Hull from the vehicle, Gordon saw a small caliber bullet, identified as a .25 auto caliber round on the passenger seat under Hull’s rear end. Upon searching the vehicle, Gordon located a .25 auto Raven Arms handgun hidden behind the glove compartment. Neither the female driver nor Hull claimed the firearm.

According to the complaint, Hull is a convicted felon for the offense of operating or attempting to operate a clandestine drug lab in 2015 in Upshur County. Hull is on bond for domestic battery and there is still a provision of his bond to have no contact with the female, the driver, who, according to Gordon’s report, knowingly picked up Hull in her vehicle.

Bond was set at $15,000.

If convicted, Hull faces confinement in jail for not less than one day and not more than one year and a fine of $250 to $2,000 for violation of a protective order. If convicted on the prohibited person in possession of a firearm charge, he faces confinement for up to five years, a fine of up to $5,000 or both.