A mug shot of a man arrested on weapons charges has gone viral on social media, attracting more than 33,000 "likes" and drawing comments praising his high cheekbones, chiselled face and striking blue eyes.

Jeremy Meeks, 30, was held on five weapons charges and one gang charge, according to Stockton Police Department in northern California.

No previous arrest photo had garnered so much positive attention since the department set up its Facebook page in March 2012, a spokesman said.

"I have not seen that many likes for a photo before," Officer Joseph Silva said.

By late Thursday, Meeks's arrest photo had more than 33,000 likes and 10,400 comments, and had been shared more than 3,300 times.

"Wow. That is one good looking mug shot!" one person wrote.

"Momma, I'm in love with a criminal," another joked.

Some online commentators even said Meeks looked like he belonged in an Abercrombie & Fitch ad or on the show America's Next Top Model.

But others were less impressed, including one who said: "He may be a tad bit cute, but with six felonies, he ain't that cute."

Meeks was one of four men taken into custody during Operation Ceasefire, a multi-agency mission to curb a recent increase in shootings and robberies in the Weston Ranch area of Stockton, a city of about 300,000 nestled amid a network of waterways that form the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

Four firearms were confiscated during a sweep involving the Stockton police gang unit, the FBI, the US Marshals Task Force and other agencies.

Mr Silva called Meeks "one of the most violent criminals in the Stockton area", although he declined to provide any details on the crimes he is believed to have been involved in.

Meeks is being held in lieu of $900,000 bail.