MPD arrests two, seize home in 2nd Street drug raid

A narcotics investigation in Mobile came to an end earlier this week as local authorities broke up a father-son “drug operation” and seized a home known for drug trafficking and violence.

According to the Mobile Police Department, officers raided a house on 2nd Street Feb. 8 after claiming in court that its owner, Freddie Gene Edwards, 65, “had distributed and [was] continuing to distribute illegal narcotics from the residence with reckless disregard for the law.”

Edwards was arrested along with his son, 31-year-old Tony Alonzo Edwards, during a search of the home, and both were charged with at least one count of distribution of a controlled substance. According to records kept by the Mobile County Metro Jail, Edwards and his son both have prior drug arrests.

In addition to the traditional police work, the MPD also utilized a judicial maneuver to place a restraining order barring the owners from the home — something officials have done to a handful of other homeowners over the past three years to address properties with a documented history of drug activity.

According to court documents, the raid earlier this week marked the fourth time MPD officers have executed search warrants at the same property since 2014. Those previous searches led to the discovery of narcotics and multiple felony “drug-related arrests.”

The home was also the site of a 2015 homicide that remains unsolved. According to MPD, the victim in that case, 25-year-old Lebaron McCovery, was killed on the front porch of the home on Aug. 8, 2015. Illegal drugs were also said to be found in McCovery’s possession at the time.

In its motion to put a restraining order on Edwards’ home, the MPD said it “believed all law enforcement efforts” to enforce the existing laws of the state of Alabama had been made, prompting the civil efforts in court.

Edwards is listed as owning the home with Marcelet H. Edwards, who was not arrested during Wednesday’s operation. In the past, city officials have demolished properties declared to be a “drug nuisance” after similar operations in the Campground neighborhood and in Maysville.

However, it’s unclear what the fate of Edwards’ property is at this time. A hearing is scheduled for Feb. 15, where Edwards will have a chance to “answer the allegations” in the city’s complaint.