Two guns, illegal fireworks seized from East Palo Alto home, sheriff says

Photo: San Mateo County Sheriff's Office

(KRON) — The San Mateo County Sheriff's Office seized two guns and a set of illegal fireworks from an East Palo Alto home. Two men were arrested after the seizure.

In May, the sheriff's office's gang investigations unit learned that people were selling illegal fireworks out of their East Palo Alto home in the 1100 block of O'Connor Street.

On June 19, the San Mateo County Narcotics Task Force, the San Mateo Vehicle Theft Task Force and the East Palo Alto Police Department served a search warrant at the home.

The search uncovered “illegal fireworks, a stolen semi-automatic pistol and an unregistered semi-automatic pistol.” Police also said they arrested two individuals.

The first suspect, Froylan Vazquez, 47, was arrested and booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility. The East Palo Alto resident was arrested for possession of a stolen firearm and illegal fireworks.

The second suspect, Antonio Torres-Vasquez, 23, was cited for possession of illegal fireworks.

The seizure is part of a larger operation to enforce a “zero tolerance” approach to Fourth of July celebrations. The operation included a series of anonymous fireworks buybacks in June that removed more than 700 pounds of illegal fireworks and explosives from the streets of San Mateo County.