JERSEY CITY -- A traffic stop near the Holland Tunnel yesterday evening lead to the recovery of a shotgun and nearly 200 rounds of ammunition, a police spokesman said.

At about 6:30 p.m., a police officer saw a blue plastic drum in the back up a pickup truck that had just passed through the Holland Tunnel toll plaza. The officer stopped the vehicle driven by a Pennsylvanian man to make sure there were no hazardous materials in the drum, Port Authority spokesman Joe Pentangelo said.

Police asked the driver Marlon Murphy, 45, of Easton, if there were any weapons in the back of his truck. Murphy told the officer there was a shotgun in the barrel, Pentangelo said.

The officer opened the drum and found a Mossberg 12 gauge shotgun hiding in a pair of pants along with 175 rounds of ammunition. Murphy did not have documentation for the weapon and was arrested, Pentangelo said.

Murphy was charged with unlawful possession of a weapon and was being held on $30,000 bail.

This is the second time in less than a week that a Pennsylvania man has been arrested for carrying a weapon in his vehicle near the Holland Tunnel.

On Wednesday morning, 24-year-old Corey Schrier was arrested for carrying a loaded pistol in the glove box of his SUV. Police also recovered extra magazines and drug paraphernalia in his vehicle.

Caitlin Mota may be reached at cmota@jjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitlin_mota. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.