BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – A 42-year-old woman faces charges after police said she had she had about 42 pounds of marijuana at her Palm Bay home.
According to a probable cause affidavit, on Sept. 27 officers from the Palm Bay Police Department responded to a residence around 4:12 p.m. in reference to a missing and endangered person.
Police said a subject was observed by a 911 caller “running up and down the street frantically looking” for a child while screaming for help.
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According to the affidavit, when officers arrived, a person related to the missing child frantically told police that she could not locate the child and requested law enforcement’s help.
Police said the woman told them that she was inside a home taking a shower, but when she exited the shower, she could not find the child.
When police asked the woman to help search inside of the home for the child, their request was denied, police said.
According to the affidavit, the person whose name was redacted in the report, was inside the home when speaking to officers and “it was unknown if the child was in immediate danger inside the residence,” police said.
Police said while standing outside of the home, they could smell a strong and distinct odor of fresh marijuana coming from the residence.
Officers made entry into the residence through an open door to search for the child and once inside, noticed several gallon-sized vacuum sealed packages in plain view in two rooms that contained a green, leafy substance.
According to the affidavit, the vacuum sealed packages were in two plastic bins that were “at least 25 gallons in volume and were filled to the top.”
An officer said they recognized the green, leafy substance as marijuana and the amount to “presumptively be that of trafficking weight.”
Police said they were able to locate the child intentionally concealing himself in a container which was the same style as the one that contained the vacuum sealed packages.
According to the affidavit, there were also surveillance cameras inside of the home and officers said that based on their training, it is common practice for subjects to use such cameras as a counter surveillance method while selling narcotics.
A search warrant was issued since the surveillance video “may potentially capture evidence of child neglect,” the affidavit states.
Officers said that during the execution of the warrant, marijuana was found in two rooms of the residence that weighed about 42 pounds. Also located were bags and scales, and three firearms, police said.
According to the affidavit, Alicia Townsend, 42, admitted to being the sole occupant of the home and was placed under arrest. She faces charges of drug trafficking, child neglect and possession.
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