Firearm Arrests

On Tuesday, August 23, 2022, between 5:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. Chico Police officers located and recovered three handguns during three separate calls for service. In two of the incidents the person in possession of the firearm was prohibited from possessing or owning a firearm.

At approximately 5:30 p.m. officers were dispatched to Degarmo Park (near the dog park) where a citizen reported seeing a male subject with what looked like a firearm. The citizen told dispatch the suspect pulled the gun out of a backpack, looked at it, then put it back in the backpack. The subject then walked to a vehicle with a dog and a female.

Officers arrived in the area, located the vehicle and its occupants. The male in the vehicle was identified as Daniel Goupil, 42 years old. Goupil was detained without incident. During a search of the vehicle a .25 caliber handgun was located under the Goupil’s seat. In addition, 2.5 grams of methamphetamine, and a methamphetamine smoking device were found in the vehicle. Goupil admitted to smoking methamphetamine prior to law enforcement arriving and that he was the person in the park with the handgun.

Officers determined Goupil is prohibited from owning or possessing firearms. Goupil was arrested for possession of methamphetamine and for being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.

At approximately 6:10 p.m. officers responded to a landlord tenant dispute in an apartment complex in the 2500 block of Burnap Ave. When officers arrived, they contacted the tenant involved, Jason Sampson, 39 years old. Sampson was in a vehicle in the parking lot and stopped to talk with officers when they arrived. During the officer’s investigation they observed, in plain view, a rifle case inside the passenger compartment of Sampson’s vehicle. What the officers discovered inside the case was a 9mm semi-auto handgun. Although the handgun was not loaded, the magazines filled with ammunition were near the gun case concealing the firearm. Sampson, who is not prohibited from possessing a firearm, does not have a concealed carry permit and admitted to officers he had been ingesting methamphetamine shortly before contact with the police. Sampson was arrested for carrying a concealable firearm in a vehicle.

At approximately 11 p.m. a Chico Police Officer patrolling in the area of W. 8th St. and Ivy St. conducted a routine vehicle registration check on a motorcycle. Upon doing so the motorcycle returned as a stolen vehicle. The officer was able to stop the motorcyclist in the 700 block of Ivy St. With the assistance of additional officers, the rider was detained without incident. The rider was then identified as Alex Coleman, 37 years old. During a search of Coleman, a loaded 9 mm semiautomatic firearm was located on the inside of the jacket Coleman was wearing. Coleman is a convicted felon making him prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm. Coleman was arrested for possession of stolen property and for being a felon in possession of a loaded, concealed firearm by a prohibited person.

In all three incidents the suspects arrested were booked into the Butte County Jail.

Location: multiple locations, Chico, CA.

Date/Time: 08/23/2022 between 5:40 p.m. and 11 p.m.

Suspects: Daniel Goupil, 42 years old, Jason Sampson, 39 years old, and Alex Coleman, 37 years old.

Supervisor: Mark Bass

Watch Commander: Lt. Love