NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — A Virginia Beach man pleaded guilty Tuesday to possession of a machine gun, being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm during, and in relation to, a drug trafficking crime.
Taekwon Malik Morris, 27, had been previously convicted of grand larceny of a firearm, which meant that he could not legally possess firearms or ammunition. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 13, 2025 and faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to life in prison.
Morris had been driving a vehicle with expired temporary tags on June 8 when Virginia Beach Police officers pulled up behind him at an intersection, at which point he got out of his car to look at his rear tires, according to court documents. But when officers told him he was being stopped, he fled.
He was caught after a brief chase, and at that time, officers found a 9mm handgun with a machine gun conversion device on the driver-side floorboard in plain view, court documents indicate. Officers found three pills containing oxycodone, 91 pills with fentanyl and $8,887 bound in rubber bands.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda L. Cheney is prosecuting this case.