A Brockton woman was arraigned this morning on gun possession charges after Boston Police stopped her car in close proximity to a shooting in the city’s Theater District, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

MIKAYLA ALFORD (D.O.B. 5/26/91) was charged in the Boston Municipal Court with unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition for the loaded handgun recovered from her handbag during a traffic stop just before 2:15 this morning. Alford is not charged in connection with a multiple shooting that took place a short time earlier and a short distance away; her potential link to that shooting, if one exists, remains under investigation.

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Rimar of Conley’s Gun Prosecution Task Force recommended that Alford be held on $75,000 cash bail. Judge Annette Forde set bail at $25,000 and ordered Alford to stay away from the downtown area while her case is open.

At about 1:30 this morning, Boston Police received specific information about a black Ford Fusion with what authorities believed to be an unlicensed firearm inside. A description and full license plate of that car was broadcast by department dispatchers.

At about 2:15 a.m., a Boston Police officer near the intersection of Charles Street South and Stuart Street saw Alford’s car – which matched the earlier description and plate number – stopped at a red light. The officer spotted the vehicle about 15 minutes after four people were shot a block away on Warrenton Street.

Given the prior broadcast to be on the lookout for that vehicle and its proximity to a multiple shooting, the sharp-eyed officer held traffic while additional Boston Police responded to speak with Alford, who was the driver and lone occupant. Alford was removed from the car and the officers observed a cloth bag on the floor. One officer patted the bag and felt a solid object shaped like a handgun – he notified the other officers, removed the item, and found it to be a Glock 26 loaded with nine rounds of ammunition hidden inside a sock.

Alford was taken into custody and transported to the Boston Police Area A-1 station for booking, where she allegedly told officers that she didn’t have a license to carry firearms.

Alford is represented by attorney Harold Hakala. She will return to court on Dec. 15.