Parents arrested as son, 5, found with cocaine in his system

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last updated 10 January 2015

A 5-year-old boy in Southern California tested positive for cocaine after authorities found him in the back of his father's car, next to half a pound of the drug.

The child's father, Marco Cuevas, was arrested Thursday after a three-month investigation into drug sales in Ventura County, NBC LA reports. The Ventura County Sheriff's Office says it believes Cuevas was behind an uptick in cocaine sales and use in the area, and that he sold the drug to teens and young adults.

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Cuevas' wife, Sandy, was also in the vehicle, holding $10,000 in suspected drug money. When officials searched the Cuevas' home in Sylmar, they say they found hundreds of pill prescriptions, several pounds of marijuana, 16 guns, almost 3,000 rounds of ammunition, and $75,000 cash. Marco and Sandy Cuevas were both arrested on suspicion of selling cocaine and child endangerment. In addition to their 5-year-old son, they have three other children.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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