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UNITED STATES ATTORNEY JOYCE WHITE VANCE |
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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | CONTACT: PEGGY SANFORD | |||
| OCTOBER ,2009 | PHONE: (205) 244-2020 | |||
| www.usdoj.gov/usao/aln | FAX: (205) 244-2171 | |||
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UNITED STATES ATTORNEY JOYCE WHITE VANCE |
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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | CONTACT: PEGGY SANFORD | |||
| OCTOBER ,2009 | PHONE: (205) 244-2020 | |||
| www.usdoj.gov/usao/aln | FAX: (205) 244-2171 | |||
FEDERAL JURY CONVICTS BIRMINGHAM MAN ON GUN CHARGE TIED TO ARMED ROBBERY
A federal jury today convicted a 25-year-old Birmingham man for being a felon in possession of a firearm in connection to a 2008 armed robbery of an auto parts store in western Birmingham that resulted in a shootout with police, U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance announced.
Following a two-day trial before Chief U.S. District Judge Sharon Lovelace Blackburn, the jury deliberated less than an hour before returning a guilty verdict against Brandon Terrell Forrest. The federal charge arose from the armed robbery of the Auto Zone on Third Avenue West at about 8:30 a.m. July 19, 2008, where Forrest possessed a 9mm pistol. Forrest and an accomplice, Cedric Javaris Moore, 24, also of Birmingham, were apprehended by police following a shootout that began as Forrest and Moore were fleeing the store. Moore was shot and wounded.
Moore earlier pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm in connection with the Auto Zone robbery. Judge Blackburn sentenced him last week to 115 months in prison. That same day, U.S. District Judge James Hancock sentenced Moore to an additional 117 months on a separate case that involved the same charge of felon in possession of a firearm.
“The use of guns to commit crimes threatens physical harm to innocent bystanders,” Vance said. “Criminals should think twice before using guns to commit crimes, unless they want to have federal charges on top of state charges and added prison time to serve.”
Both Moore and Forrest face state charges of armed robbery and attempted murder in Jefferson County, arising from the Auto Zone robbery.
The case initially was investigated by Birmingham Police, who brought the federal charges to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for prosecution under Project Isolate the Criminal Element (ICE).
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