BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) -- A federal grand jury has indicted 11 people on charges of illegally buying pistols for other people, federal prosecutors said Monday.
According to the indictment, multiple guns were bought from licensed dealers in Tuscaloosa County in late 2020 by "straw" purchasers who were purchasing weapons for others, the U.S. attorney's office said in a statement.
One person, 26-year-old Adrian Benito Carter of Tuscaloosa, was charged with 13 counts, including selling guns without a license, making false statements and being a felon in possession of a firearm, prosecutors said. The others were charged with making false statements while buying weapons.
The case is part of a federal program to combat "straw purchases," or the illegal purchase of a gun for someone else, authorities said.
An arraignment hearing was scheduled for Dec. 9 in Birmingham, court documents show. Records don't include the names of defense attorneys representing any of the 11 defendants.