North Charleston Police arrested a 36-year-old man Friday morning after officers conducting patrols near the G Club on Peppermill Parkway reportedly discovered a handgun inside his vehicle.

According to police, officers were patrolling the area around 3 a.m. due to a recent increase in firearm-related incidents when they noticed a man, later identified as Quinton Romell Summers, sitting inside a van that was parked in the roadway with the door open.

As an officer drove past with the window down, he reportedly saw Summers smoking and smelled Marijuana coming from the vehicle. When officers approached, police said Summers attempted to distance himself from the vehicle by opening the door and trying to exit. Officers also said he lit a cigarette, apparently in an attempt to mask the smell of Marijuana.

Police instructed Summers to remain inside the vehicle. While speaking with him, officers reportedly observed an open container of alcohol and what appeared to be a marijuana joint in the ashtray of the center console.

Summers was then asked to exit the vehicle. When officers asked whether there were any firearms or narcotics inside, he reportedly said there were not. Summers told officers he was in the area waiting for his cousin to arrive at the club and said he had driven to the location alone.

Police subsequently conducted a probable-cause search of the van. During the search, officers reportedly found a handgun inside the glove compartment and suspected Marijuana in the center console.

A criminal-history check allegedly revealed that Summers is a convicted felon.

Summers was charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Convicted of a Violent Crime, and Felony Possession of a Firearm.

He was taken to the Al Cannon Detention Center.