A tip about online child exploitation sent investigators to a League City home on Thursday, where they say they found far more than they expected: 15 firearms, THC liquid by the tens of thousands of grams, and enough other drugs to fill an evidence room. Three people now face charges, and one of them is also accused of possessing child pornography.
According to click2houston.com, the case began in July when the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children flagged online activity to investigators. That tip set off a monthslong inquiry that culminated Thursday when officers served a search warrant at a home in the 2000 block of Island Manor Lane in League City. The Galveston County Sheriff's Office said the investigation drew on its Major Crimes Unit, members of the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and FBI agents from Texas City.
Three people were arrested as a result of the search: Sebastian Xavier Ruiz, 22, Eric Anthony Zavala, 32, and Kelly Ann Zavala, 49, according to the Galveston County Daily News. All three face drug-related charges, while Ruiz alone was booked on an additional count tied to the exploitation tip that started the probe.
What Investigators Say They Found Inside the Home
The drug haul described by authorities was extensive. The same Galveston County Daily News report lists 76,543 grams of THC liquid, 84.3 ounces of THC concentrate, 22.5 grams of Quaaludes, 16 pounds of marijuana and 238 THC vape pens recovered from the property.
Alongside the narcotics, officers also seized 15 firearms: four handguns, one shotgun and 10 rifles, the station's report notes. Investigators additionally removed several electronic devices for forensic review, and that analysis remains ongoing, per the same account.
Charges and Bond Amounts for the Three Defendants
Ruiz was booked on counts that include possession of child pornography involving fewer than 10 visual depictions, delivery of a Penalty Group 2 controlled substance exceeding 400 grams, possession of marijuana between 5 and 50 pounds, and possession of a Penalty Group 2 controlled substance between 4 and 400 grams. His bond was set at $410,000.
Eric Zavala faces charges of delivering more than 400 grams of a Penalty Group 2 controlled substance, possessing 5 to 50 pounds of marijuana, and possessing between 4 and 400 grams of a Penalty Group 2 controlled substance, with bond listed at $330,000. Kelly Zavala was charged with delivery of a Penalty Group 2 controlled substance exceeding 400 grams and possession of 5 to 50 pounds of marijuana, and her bond was set at $230,000.
A Pattern of Cyber Tips Leading to Galveston County Searches
This is not the only recent Galveston County case to trace back to a tip from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. In Santa Fe, the sheriff's office's Major Crimes Unit began investigating after receiving a June report from the same organization, according to CW39. That inquiry led deputies and Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force members to serve a search warrant on Jan Lane at Avenue Q on July 23, seizing multiple electronic devices for forensic analysis.
A Santa Fe juvenile was ultimately charged with possession of visual material depicting sexual assault, a first-degree felony, CW39 reported. The League City case remains at an earlier stage, with forensic review of the seized devices still underway and no further details released about the online activity that first drew investigators' attention.
