Covelo traffic stop leads to seizure of 14 guns

The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office seized 14 guns from a Covelo home this month in a raid that was prompted by the discovery of several bags of marijuana during a traffic stop, authorities said.

Some of the guns found at the home, in the 400 block of Hatchet Mountain Boulevard, “had characteristics of being classified as an assault weapon in California,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. Two of them were illegal short-barreled shotguns, the agency said.

Authorities found a 13-year-old inside the home and none of the guns were secured to prevent access. Two loaded guns and ammunition were found in the teenager’s bedroom, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

The raid, which happened at about 4 p.m. on Jan. 1, came after a deputy pulled over a driver, whose vehicle registration was expired, near the intersection of Airport Road and Howard Street in Covelo.

During the traffic stop, which happened shortly after 11 p.m. on Dec. 29, the deputy “smelled burnt marijuana, saw burnt marijuana cigarettes and noticed bud marijuana inside the vehicle,” the Sheriff’s Office said.

The deputy then searched the vehicle and found more than 10 bags of marijuana, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

The driver, Leonard Dudley Whipple III, 20, of Covelo, was cited and released on suspicion of transportation for sale of marijuana.

There were four juveniles in the vehicle. One of them, a 16-year-old boy, was wanted on a warrant. He was arrested and booked into the Mendocino County Juvenile Hall, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The Sheriff’s Office then got a search warrant prompted by the traffic stop for the home on Hatchet Mountain Boulevard, officials said.

During the raid, the Sheriff’s Office arrested Teresa Bettega, 37, who deputies spoke with outside the home. She “began blocking the door and was physically resistant” when authorities tried to enter the home, the Sheriff’s Office said.

She was booked into the Mendocino County Jail on suspicion of resisting deputies with violence and child endangerment and her bail was set at $50,000.

While searching the home, deputies found evidence showing that another man, Leonard Whipple Jr., 39, “had also been associated with the firearms located,” the Sheriff’s Office said. He was prohibited from possessing guns and ammunition.

Deputies searched unsuccessfully for both Whipple Jr. and Whipple III after the raid. A Mendocino County Superior Court judge issued arrest warrants for both men in connection with the raid, the Sheriff’s Office said.

You can reach Staff Writer Matt Pera at matthew.pera@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @Matt__Pera.