Gasconade County Republican

An Owensville woman, her ex-husband, and a friend of theirs were arrested Friday evening following a police investigation into possible illegal drug use at a residence in the 800 block of West Jackson Avenue.

Owensville Police Chief Robert Rickerd said his department began an investigation Friday after receiving information from the Gasconade County Division of Family Services that children in the home were being exposed to alleged drug use and that numerous weapons were inside the one-story, wood-frame home.

Rickerd said the ex-husband, 31, is a convected felon and is not allowed to possess firearms.

Formal charges had not been filed as of Tuesday. Rickerd said his department delivered a probable cause statement to the Gasconade County prosecutor’s office on Tuesday seeking felony charges against the ex-husband and his friend,  who was visiting the residence when police arrived. The female, 32, taken into custody is the primary resident of the home, said Rickerd.

Police went to the residence at around 4 p.m. to secure the scene. Rickerd returned about 10 minutes later with a search warrant issued at 3:20 p.m. by Associate Circuit Judge John B. Berkemeyer. Police spent about an hour searching the home’s interior.

Rickerd and his officers seized four long guns including rifles and shotguns and one pistol from the house. Ammunition was also seized. “The weapons were all easily accessible to the minor children,” said Rickerd adding none had safety locks installed.

Rickerd said the couple’s daughter, 3, was at home when police arrived. Their son was at a friend’s house. Both children were secure at a friend’s residence in the neighborhood as the search was being conducted.

The warrant also authorized police to search any vehicle on the property. Police searched all four vehicles on the property.

Inside a black Dodge passenger car, police found a plastic bag which contained suspected marijuana. The car belonged to a friend of the husband.

“He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Rickerd.

Although the car’s owner told police it was only a “misdemeanor amount,” Rickerd said later that evening that it weight out to “just under 40 grams.”

Police are seeking a felony drug possession charge for having more than 35 grams of marijuana against the visitor.

The woman faces a felony charge for endangering the welfare of minor children and a misdemeanor charge of unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. Police are seeking a felony child endangerment charge against the ex-husband and a felony charge of possession of firearms by a convicted felon. Police said his felony conviction was for burglary. Police are also seeking a drug possession charge against the husband after police found a small amount of marijuana in his pocket when he was searched.

All three were taken from the scene in handcuffs. The woman was being allowed to post bond that evening and was scheduled to be released pending formal charges. The two men were taken to the Crawford County in Steelville on a 20-hour hold. They were released Saturday pending warrants being issued. Rickerd said Family Services personnel had started a file on the case. Two DFS staff members arrived at the police station that evening as the mother was being processed for arrest. Family members of the woman arrived at the scene and were told the children were in safe hands with a family friend.