The Occupy Wall Street protest could have been one bad temper away from turning lethal.
Cops busted a man from Youngstown, Ohio this weekend for driving around the OWS protest and Lower Manhattan with an unregistered gun.
Law enforcement said Joshua Fellows, 32, had a .45-calibre handgun and 32 rounds of ammunition in a truck he’d rented in North Carolina.
Fellows was originally busted on Thursday at 12:40 p.m. at Broadway and Exchange Place on a reckless driving charge after cops saw up to 40 people jumping in and out of the Budget rental truck
They seized the truck and found the gun during a search, and found Fellows Saturday at 9:10 p.m. at West Street and Rector Place.
He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, arraigned, and was later released.
In all police arrested five people during the weekend, including Fellows, a protester who threw liquid in a cop’s face and another alleged groper for attacking a woman, cops said today.
On Saturday, Zach Breur, 22, allegedly groped the breasts and buttocks of a 22-year-old woman. He was charged with two counts of forcible touching.
And a homeless man cops id’d as Michael Doe was busted at 5:37 p.m. the same day and charged with criminal mischef after he was spotted tampering with Christmas lights at the park.
The mayhem continued yesterday, when a 52-year-old homeless man was collared after he allegedly threw an unknown liquid into a cop’s face about 11:40 a.m. EMTs flushed the officer’s eyes with water and he did not need to go to the hospital.
About the same time, a woman trying to get into the park carrying sleeping gear was arrested after she refused security guard’s order to keep out.
Star Bun, 24, 125 Taylor St. in Brooklyn, was charged with criminal trespass and resisting arrest.
Peace out, dude: Accused Occupy gun nut Joshua Fellows leaves his arraignment related to an earlier protest this week. Cops say he had an unregistered handgun in his car. (David McGlynn)