OPINION BY FORD ELLIOTT, P.J.:
Appellant, Annibal Cruz, brings this appeal following his conviction for various weapons' offenses. Appellant raises multiple suppression issues and a sufficiency of the evidence claim. Finding no merit, we affirm.
A suppression hearing held immediately prior to appellant's trial revealed the following facts. At approximately 1:25 p.m. on November 1, 2008, Officer Joseph Doyle of the Philadelphia police received a radio dispatch to be on the lookout for an "Hispanic male driving an older model green, small vehicle." (Notes of testimony, 6/22/09 at 7.) The report stated that the man had a gun. (Id.) Approximately one minute later, Officer Doyle observed a vehicle answering that description, which he stated "stuck out," being "a classic car sort of a bright green, older color that you don't see on vehicles anymore."
Within one minute of appellant's stop, other officers arrived on the scene with the initial complainant, who identified appellant as the man who had pulled a gun and threatened her. (Id. at 12-13.) Officer Doyle ran the vehicle identification number, but found no result in Pennsylvania. (Id. at 14.) Police then impounded the vehicle. (Id. at 15.) Prior to the tow truck arriving, Officer Doyle conducted a brief inventory search of the vehicle, which the officer stated was protocol. (Id. at 27.) When he touched a latched compartment on the vehicle's passenger side, the door fell open, revealing a firearm. (Id. at 17-18.) Officer Doyle stated that he went to the passenger side because that was the direction in which he had observed appellant moving sideways. (Id. at 18.) A rubber glove was also found in the car. (Id. at 34.) The complainant had reported that appellant was wearing gloves. (Id.) Upon inquiry, appellant stated that he used the glove to wash and wax the car. (Id.)
Immediately after the court denied appellant's suppression motion, a bench trial was conducted. The court found appellant guilty of persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell, or transfer firearms, firearms not to be carried without a license, and carrying firearms on public streets or public property in Philadelphia.
Appellant raises the following issues on appeal:
Appellant's brief at 4.
We begin our analysis of the suppression issues with this standard of review:
Commonwealth v. Cauley, 10 A.3d 321, 325 (Pa.Super.2010), quoting Commonwealth v. Bomar, 573 Pa. 426, 445, 826 A.2d 831, 842 (2003).
In his first issue, appellant asserts that the information contained in the radio dispatch was not sufficiently reliable to amount to reasonable suspicion to justify Officer Doyle's initial stop. We observe that the forcible stop of a vehicle constitutes an investigative detention such that there must be reasonable suspicion that illegal activity is occurring. Commonwealth v. Clinton, 905 A.2d 1026, 1030 (Pa.Super.2006), appeal denied, 594 Pa. 685, 934 A.2d 71 (2007). Police are justified in stopping a vehicle when relying on information transmitted by a valid police bulletin. In re D.M., 556 Pa. 160, 164, 727 A.2d 556, 558 (1999). Moreover, even where the officer who performs the stop does not have reasonable suspicion, the stop is nonetheless valid if the radio officer requesting the stop has reasonable suspicion. Commonwealth v. Jackson, 548 Pa. 484, 490 n. 3, 698 A.2d 571, 574 n. 3 (1997).
Appellant bases his argument on two decisions of this court, Commonwealth v. Wiley, 858 A.2d 1191 (Pa.Super.2004), appeal dismissed as improvidently granted, 588 Pa. 391, 904 A.2d 905 (2006), and Commonwealth v. Jones, 845 A.2d 821 (Pa.Super.2004). In Wiley, an anonymous informant contacted Philadelphia police that he had observed the appellant in the possession
Similarly, in Jones, Harrisburg police received a call informing them that a burgundy Chevrolet with license plate EJT8020 was parked on the 1100 block of Hannover Street and that drug activity was occurring. An officer was dispatched and appellant was stopped, frisked, and arrested. Police subsequently contacted the informant. The difference in Jones was that the police dispatcher at least knew the name of the informant. In addition to mirroring the rationale of Wiley, Jones also held that merely knowing the name of the informant did not render the information sufficiently reliable to justify the stop. We note that Jones is in conflict with other cases. Other cases have found that knowing the identity of the informant does sufficiently heighten the reliability of the information because where the informant's identity is known, he or she risks prosecution for giving false information to police.
Within one minute of appellant's stop, additional police arrived on the scene accompanied by the original complainant/informant. From this fact it may be inferred that the complainant was known to, and was in the company of, the police prior to the stop. Therefore, we find two reasons to attach heightened reliability to the information conveyed by the complainant. First, not only was the complainant known to the police, the complainant was actually in the company of police and surely risked prosecution for false information. Altadonna. Second, our cases have also regarded information coming from the actual crime victim as meriting a high degree of reliability. In re D.M., 556 Pa. at 165, 727 A.2d at 558. Therefore, we find that Officer Doyle possessed the requisite reasonable suspicion to justify the stop of appellant, and we find no merit in appellant's first issue.
In his next two issues, appellant contends that the search of the vehicle was invalid either because there were no exigent circumstances to justify it, or, in the event that the search is considered an inventory search, it was done for investigative purposes, exceeded the scope of an inventory search, did not comply with Philadelphia police policy, and was improperly performed without waiting 24 hours. Simply stated, we find that appellant cannot successfully challenge the search of the vehicle because he has failed to demonstrate any privacy interest in the vehicle. Appellant presented no evidence that he owned the vehicle, that it was registered in his name, or that he was using it with the permission of the registered owner. Thus, appellant had no cognizable expectation of
Next, appellant complains that the court below erred in failing to suppress an incriminating statement made by appellant before appellant had been apprised of his Miranda rights.
First, we see no objection or request to suppress this information anywhere in the notes of testimony based upon Miranda or any other reason. Second, the testimony does not reveal whether appellant spontaneously volunteered this information or whether it was elicited by a police question:
Notes of testimony, 6/22/09 at 33-34.
The complainant was present at appellant's stop and identified appellant. It is impossible to tell from the testimony whether appellant was spontaneously responding to the complainant's accusations. Finally, whether or not appellant owned the gloves is not incriminating. What is incriminating is the mere presence of the gloves, coupled with the complainant's claim that her assailant wore the gloves. In sum, we find no merit to this issue. Appellant never asked that this information be suppressed, and has given no valid reason on appeal for its suppression.
In his final issue, appellant argues that the evidence was insufficient to convict him of the firearms offenses because he did not physically possess the firearm, and it was found in a vehicle that did not belong to him. We begin with our standard of review:
Illegal possession of a firearm may be shown by constructive possession. Commonwealth v. Parker, 847 A.2d 745, 750 (Pa.Super.2004).
Id., quoting Commonwealth v. Thompson, 779 A.2d 1195, 1199 (Pa.Super.2001), appeal denied, 567 Pa. 760, 790 A.2d 1016 (2001).
Appellant was the only person found in the vehicle. The gun in question was found in a compartment on the passenger side of the vehicle. Officer Doyle testified that appellant was observed moving sideways toward the passenger side of the vehicle immediately after Officer Doyle turned on his lights and siren. During questioning, appellant gave Officer Doyle five or six different names and multiple birthdates, thus exhibiting a consciousness of guilt. Under these circumstances, we think the trial court was justified in concluding that appellant had knowledge of the gun, had the power and intent to exercise control of the gun, and, therefore, had constructive possession of the gun.
Appellant cites four cases in his support: Commonwealth v. Chenet, 473 Pa. 181, 373 A.2d 1107 (1977); Commonwealth v. Wisor, 466 Pa. 527, 353 A.2d 817 (1976); Commonwealth v. Townsend, 428 Pa. 281, 237 A.2d 192 (1968); and Commonwealth v. Hamm, 301 Pa.Super. 266, 447 A.2d 960 (1982). In each of these cases, however, either multiple persons were in the cars that were stopped, or multiple persons had access to the car.
Accordingly, having found no merit in any issue on appeal, we will affirm the judgment of sentence.
Judgment of sentence affirmed.