Tuscaloosa Police & FBI Announce 90 Arrests in Monthlong Detail

A month-long joint enforcement operation by the Tuscaloosa Police Department and the FBI ended with 90 arrests and the recovery of 10 firearms, police said Friday.

In a joint press conference, TPD and FBI leaders joined local and federal prosecutors and said the detail was led by TPD's deputy chief, Severn "Sebo" Sanders, and began on July 14.

The operation ended in mid-August, during which time investigators made 276 traffic stops, primarily in high-crime areas. About a third of those ended in arrests -- officers and agents said they booked 90 people on criminal charges stemming from the stops.

Of those, 48 were felonies, and the other half were misdemeanors. The investigators also said two of the recovered firearms had been reported stolen, and yet another was equipped with a "Glock switch," a small device that converts a semiautomatic pistol to fully automatic fire and is illegal to possess under federal law.

Two cases stemming from the operation were adopted for federal prosecution.

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Among those taken into custody were Anthony Jones, described by police as a murder suspect, and Dekendrick Turner, who was wanted in connection with a murder in Lamar County. Officers also apprehended a suspect wanted for sexual abuse of a child younger than 12 and another person wanted on a robbery warrant, nethier of whom was named in the release.

A shooting suspect was identified through FBI fingerprint resources, taken into custody and later deported, according to the department.

The detail also located a missing person from Baltimore, Maryland.

"These officers worked pretty much day and night to identify the people carrying guns and Glock switches, and among those were two murder suspects that we took into custody," Sanders said.

The officers and agents said the operation was carried out to keep the end of summer as safe as possible and to help Tuscaloosa prepare for the upcoming surge of visitors that college football will bring in the weeks to come

Without specifically naming the area's growing network of surveillance cameras and license plate readers, TPD Chief Michael Baygents said the use of new "cyber" tools, unmarked cars and other techniques allowed the detail to average nine traffic stops a day in high-crime areas or on people known to be repeat offenders.

"This detail was focused on identifying and apprehending people wanted for serious crimes and removing illegally possessed firearms from Tuscaloosa," TPD Chief Michael Baygents said.

David R. Fitzgibbons, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Birmingham Field Office, said the results reflect what the two agencies can do together.

"Partnerships deliver results. It arms us with the authority and momentum to intensify our efforts, and we will continue to use it to aggressively pursue the worst offenders and remove them from our communities—decisively and without hesitation," Fitzgibbons said.

For more exclusive coverage of crime and courts in West Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.