Norristown man draws prison on gun and drug charges
NORRISTOWN >> A Norristown man faces 10 years of court supervision on gun and drug trafficking charges.
Malik Jaysan “Glizz” Crawford, 26, of the 400 block of East Moore Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 4 to 10 years in a state correctional facility after he pleaded guilty to charges of person not to possess a firearm and possession with intent to deliver controlled substances in connection with incidents that occurred in October 2021 in Norristown.
Judge Thomas M. DelRicci imposed the sentence as part of a plea agreement.
An investigation of Crawford began in October 2021 after detectives found drugrelated text messages on the phone of a Lansdale woman with whom Crawford had communicated, according to court documents.
Undercover detectives then posed as the woman and engaged in text message communications with Crawford during which Crawford agreed to sell 20 Xanax pills to the undercover detective while believing him to be the woman he previously talked to, according to the arrest affidavit. A meeting was arranged to occur in “Hill Alley,” a small alleyway in the area of Arch and East Minor streets in Norristown, on Oct. 28.
While detectives positioned themselves near Hill Alley they observed Crawford approaching the area from East Minor Street and attempted to take Crawford into custody, according to the arrest affidavit.
“Instead of surrendering, Crawford fled on foot toward Arch Street. As Crawford approached Arch Street, a fully-loaded black 9mm Glock handgun fell from Crawford’s pocket into the street,” detectives wrote in court papers.
A detective secured the firearm while other detectives chased Crawford, who continued to run and ignore multiple police commands to stop, according to the criminal complaint. Crawford eventually was taken into custody in the rear yard of a home in the 800 block of Arch Street.
A search of Crawford uncovered multiple bags
of pills consistent with Xanax, pills consistent with the appearance of oxycodone, a bag containing multiple, small individually packaged bags of crack cocaine and a bundle of suspected heroin/ fentanyl, according to the criminal complaint. Other items seized from Crawford included a backpack that contained a digital scale commonly used for weighing of drugs during preparation for sale, detectives alleged.
When he was interviewed by detectives, Crawford admitted he was in the area to sell drugs and admitted that the firearm fell from him while he ran from police and that he knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm. The investigation determined that Crawford did not possess a valid concealed carry permit and that the handgun had been reported stolen in Norristown in August 2021, according to court documents.
Other charges of possession of a weapon, receiving stolen property, firearms not to be carried without a license, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest were dismissed against Crawford as part of the plea agreement.