Late Thursday, IMPD's Violent Crimes Unit hit a south-side house on Alonzo Drive with a search warrant and, according to court filings, walked into what looked like a full-scale drugs-and-weapons operation. Three children, ages 4, 18 months and 7 months, were taken to Riley Hospital for Children after initial screenings detected fentanyl. The 7-month-old remained hospitalized and dependent on oxygen. Police also arrested a 17-year-old wanted on an outstanding murder warrant, and other adults connected to the home were later booked into jail.
How the search unfolded
Detectives said they were looking for 17-year-old Tarik Rhodes, who was wanted on a murder warrant tied to a March 2025 gas station shooting that left a 17-year-old dead, as reported by WISH-TV. Officers found Rhodes at the Alonzo Drive address, arrested him and took him to the Marion County Jail. Earlier coverage has followed the long-running homicide investigation and the recent arrest of another teenager in that case. For more background on the east-side gas station killing and related arrests, see Second Teen Nabbed In Deadly Shooting.
What officers say they found
IMPD detectives, working with DEA agents, reported seizing a sizable haul of drugs along with the equipment used to process them. Court documents list roughly 6 pounds of fentanyl, about 9 pounds of cocaine and 4 pounds of ecstasy pills, along with oxycodone, drug presses, scales and cutting agents, according to WTHR. Investigators also reported recovering 19 firearms, a large amount of ammunition and a Glock that had been fitted with a machine-gun conversion switch, according to the filings.
Children hospitalized and DCS response
All three children were taken to Riley Hospital for Children, where they screened positive for fentanyl exposure, and the Indiana Department of Child Services removed them from the home, local reporting states. The 7-month-old remained hospitalized and oxygen-dependent. Officials have not released identifying details, citing the children's ages, according to Yahoo.
Charges and court dates
Two adults tied to the residence, 22-year-old Felicia Smith and 45-year-old Jerry Moore, were arrested March 2 and now face multiple felony counts that include dealing in cocaine, dealing in a narcotic drug and neglect of a dependent. Moore is also charged with possession of a machine gun, according to WTHR. A 48-year-old man who was detained and later released is described in court filings as a frequent visitor with prior large cash seizures linked to narcotics trafficking, and another man, 48-year-old Ricky Horton, was formally charged with possession of cocaine and visiting a common nuisance. Rhodes remains held without bond in the Marion County Jail and is scheduled for a court appearance in April.
Why public-health officials are alarmed
Local surveillance and toxicology data show fentanyl turning up in a large share of drug samples and suspected overdose deaths in Marion County, which health experts say raises the odds that children can suffer severe, even life‑threatening exposure from extremely small amounts. Marion Health's Q3 2025 report found fentanyl present in about 75 percent of items tested at safe-syringe sites in the county, a trend public-health officials warn makes accidental pediatric exposures more likely and more dangerous, according to Marion Health.
