‘Reckless’: 3-year-old found with 2 kilos of cocaine in backpack; mother arrested

MOBILE, Ala. — An Alabama woman was arrested after $450,000 worth of narcotics were found in a home, including 2.2 kilograms of cocaine hidden in a 3-year-old’s backpack, authorities said.

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According to a news release from the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, Tierra Tocorra Hill, 35, of Mobile, was arrested and charged with the trafficking cocaine, second-degree possession of marijuana, tampering with physical evidence and four counts of chemical endangerment of a child, WKRG-TV reported.

The sheriff’s office said it received information that a woman, later identified as Hill, had drugs inside her home, according to AL.com.

Narcotics investigators set up surveillance and followed Hill to her home, where they conducted a traffic stop, WPMI-TV reported. According to the sheriff’s office, investigators discovered approximately 3.3 pounds of cocaine, a small amount of marijuana and a handgun in the vehicle, the television station reported.

When investigators arrived at her home, they found four children without adult supervision. The children’s ages were 3, 8, 10 and 15, according to AL.com.

A search warrant was issued at the residence, and authorities discovered a 3-year-old child wearing a blue Nike backpack, WPMI reported. The backpack contained 2.2 kilograms of cocaine, according to WALA-TV.

They also found another kilogram of cocaine and two more handguns inside a black backpack, AL.com reported.

Authorities said the cocaine and handgun were accessible to the minor children at the time. No other adults were at the home.

“It is absurd how reckless this situation was,” Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said in a statement. “There was a total disregard for the law and the children’s well-being.”

The sheriff’s office says additional charges may be filed, WALA reported.

“It’s just alarming that a mother would allow their children to be exposed to these types of things,” Burch said in his statement. “She has to see a judge before bond is set but my two cents is she ought to sit her butt in jail until she goes to trial. She subjected those children to extremely dangerous situations.”

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