Three arrested in major Alpharetta drug bust

ALPHARETTA, Ga. - Three people are in custody after a major narcotics bust in Alpharetta on Thursday. What is even more shocking is that police said five children, between the ages of two months to 13 years old, were living in that house. Police said the children’s parents are now behind bars.

This started two weeks ago at an apartment on Ivywood Lane. The Drug Enforcement Agency along with the Alpharetta Police Department were about to execute a search warrant for a home described federal officials as a “narcotics distribution point,” when the subjects inside drove away. Undercover detectives followed the vehicle and eventually pulled it over a short distance away.

“By the time the individuals were arrested, we were confident they have been doing this for a while and they would have continued to do so had the DEA not done their good work,” said George Gordon with the Alpharetta Police Department.

Vendi Rivera, 31, Alonso Penaloza, 25, and Alejandro Garcia Leon, 20, were arrested on charges of trafficking methamphetamine, possession of marijuana to distribute, conspiracy to commit a crime, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and traffic charges.

“Three large shopping bags were located in a master bedroom of the residence. Inside those three large bags was a total of five bags containing a total of ten pounds of methamphetamine. The methamphetamine was wrapped up. It was not cut. Based on street pricing for ten pounds of methamphetamine, we are looking at a street value of between $250,000 and a half million dollars,” said Gordon.

Investigators said about 4 pounds of marijuana, guns and ammo were also inside the home.

During the raid, police said a man came to the home to try to purchase meth. He was immediately arrested. Authorities said he had meth and a gun. The convicted felon was charged with drug and firearm possession. His name has not yet been released.

“I moved here from Chicago to get away. Not that it was an unsafe area, but when I saw what was going on, I just said ‘jeez,’” said Sid Woods, who lives above the apartment.

At this point, it's unclear where the drugs were going or how long the operation had been going.

Authorities believe the suspects have ties to Mexican gangs.