Bessemer Man Indicted on Drug and Gun Charges Appears in Federal Court

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- A Bessemer man arrested by the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, on January 4, 2023, appeared in federal court today, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Special Agent in Charge Marcus Watson. 

Tahji Alonzo Orr, 24, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Staci G. Cornelius on charges of possession with the intent to distribute marijuana, possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance containing a detectable amount of heroin and fentanyl, possession of a machine gun during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, and illegally possessing a machine gun, that is, a Glock 9mm pistol equipped with a “Glock switch” – an after-market device designed to illegally convert a semiautomatic Glock pistol into a fully automatic machine gun.  The charges stem from events that occurred in March 2022 in Jefferson County.  Orr was ordered detained pending trial. 

The maximum penalty for possession with the intent to distribute marijuana is five years in prison. The maximum penalty for possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance containing a detectable amount of heroin and fentanyl is 20 years in prison.  The minimum penalty for carrying a machine gun during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime is life in prison.  The maximum penalty for possession of a machine gun is 10 years in prison.

The ATF investigated the case along with U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, the Hoover Police Department and the Bessemer Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Royster is prosecuting the case.

An indictment contains only charges.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.