Three of the 19 guns had devices for automatic fire and two were stolen, Huntsville police said. Here are the charges from the Oct. 16-18 operation.

Huntsville police recovered 19 firearms and arrested nine people during a three-day operation targeting gun violence, the department said.

The operation ran Friday, Oct. 16, through Sunday, Oct. 18. Officers ran proactive patrols across the city to raise their visibility and recover illegally held guns, the Huntsville Police Department said in its release on the operation, published Thursday.

What police recovered

  • 19 firearms in total
  • three with devices or modifications designed to allow automatic fire
  • two confirmed as stolen

One of the guns was an AK-style pistol that Madison County sheriff’s deputies recovered during a traffic stop, the department said.

“We are not waiting for gun violence to happen before taking action,” Police Chief Kirk Giles said in the release.

Who took part

HPD’s Anti-Crime Team led the operation. It had support from:

  • the North Alabama Multi-Agency Crime Center
  • the North Alabama Drug Task Force
  • HPD’s K-9 Unit and its Unmanned Aircraft Systems Unit

The Owens Cross Roads Police Department, the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also took part.

Arrests and charges

An arrest or charge is an accusation. Every person named here is presumed innocent unless and until convicted in court. If you were named and the case was dropped, dismissed or ended in acquittal, use our update route and we will amend this item.

The department listed these arrests, worded as it released them:

Date Arrested Charged with
Oct. 16 Maurice Ty’quavis Jessiah Hewlett Jr., 18, of Huntsville, after a traffic stop Two counts of possession of a machine gun conversion device
Oct. 16 A 17-year-old boy, in the same traffic stop Minor in possession of a firearm
Oct. 16 Laron Anthony Coley, 24, of Huntsville, after a traffic stop by sheriff’s deputies Certain persons forbidden to possess a firearm
Oct. 17 Ra’Keem Ramond Parks, 18, of Birmingham, after a traffic stop Possession of a machine gun conversion device
Oct. 17 Jaquavion Demond Hamlett, 20, of Huntsville, after a vehicle pursuit on Hall Avenue Felony attempting to elude
Oct. 17 Kamron Javier Leamon, 19, of Huntsville, after the same pursuit Certain persons forbidden to possess a firearm
Oct. 18 Kejuan Jabray Lamb-Gregg, 18, of Adamsville, after a vehicle pursuit Felony attempting to elude, reckless endangerment and second-degree receiving stolen property
Oct. 18 Rodrickus Bernard Jones, 18, of Birmingham, after the same pursuit Second-degree receiving stolen property
Oct. 18 Mondarius Javeze Thompson, 24, of Huntsville, in the 2000 block of Poole Drive Menacing

Officers saw Thompson armed with a handgun during an incident on Poole Drive, police said. No one was hurt.

Investigators found that Leamon and Coley were barred from having guns because of pending violent felony charges from earlier arrests, the department said.

The department said several cases remain under investigation, including possible federal violations. More charges may follow.

What it means for you

Two of the people arrested were charged with having a machine gun conversion device. The department described those devices as designed to let a gun fire automatically.

To reach Huntsville police about a crime that is not an emergency, call 256-722-7100, the non-emergency number on the department’s page. Dial 911 in an emergency. The department said it will keep running operations like this one with its partners.

Our weekly Police and Fire log collects the department’s own releases.