Police say they arrested a couple illegally carrying concealed weapons, as well as about $10,000 worth of drugs, at the Charleston Town Center last week.
Kanawha County Chief Deputy Mike Rutherford said during a press conference at the sheriff's office Thursday that police received an anonymous tip on Feb. 23 that two people were at the mall with guns and drugs.
"Our detectives literally had to run across the street to the Town Center to get them," he said.
Police confronted George Rodney Leake III and Tamara Lea Lanham as the couple walked to their car. Leake, who had a holster on, put the gun in the vehicle, and deputies could see a gun inside the woman's purse, Rutherford said.
Leake, 32, of Montgomery, and Lanham, 25, of Beckley, were both charged with carrying a concealed weapon, according to criminal complaints filed in Kanawha County Magistrate Court.
"As a result of that charge, we were able to get search warrants and we found heroin, meth and $26,000 in cash on them," Rutherford said.
Police found 1 ounce of meth and 1/2 ounce of heroin, according to Rutherford. He said drug charges are likely.
Both have been released on bond from the South Central Regional Jail.
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin vetoed a bill Thursday that would let people carry concealed weapons without a permit. The Legislature can override the veto with a simple majority.
Rutherford said the office wasn't trying to make a statement about the legislation.
"The only thing we're doing is just letting you know what happened," he said. "...Obviously we're very concerned about weapons in the hands of people that shouldn't have them."