Search uncovers drugs and weapons
Grenades, marijuana plants found inside home with two kids
A Jackson Township woman was charged with several felonies after officers with Porter County’s Multi-Enforcement Group reportedly found explosives, guns and drugs, as well as a marijuana growing operation, in the home she shared with her husband and two young children.
Shannon Gavin, of the 250 East block of County Road 650 North, who will be 39 on Wednesday, was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon, according to Porter County Jail records. She has since bailed out of the jail on $8,000 cash bond, according to online court records. She is scheduled for a Nov. 23 initial hearing.
Michael Grcich, of the same address, who according to charging documents in Gavin’s case is her husband, faces the same charges, according to online court records. He was not in custody as of Tuesday afternoon. His bond is $15,000 cash.
Police executed a search warrant on the residence and a pole barn on the property on July 26, according to charging documents filed on Nov. 10. When police arrived, they found Gavin and her two young children, ages 3 and 7.
A search of the home and pole barn, according to charging documents, yielded numerous firearms, including one found in a microwave, ammunition, body armor and a smoke grenade; three boxes of homemade destructive devices, large-scale fireworks that require a permit and a “practice grenade” that required consultation with explosive ordnance disposal officials at Grissom Air Reserve Base; four marijuana plants in a vented, lit tent in the basement; and an assortment of illegal drugs.
Gavin told police that “she had been collecting miscellaneous pills and medication that she has found within the residence” and storing them in a purse, according to court records, and also said she had “no knowledge” of any explosives in the residence or on the property, documents said.
She reportedly told police that a family friend gave her and Grcich
the marijuana growing operation a few months ago and that Grcich “has been maintaining the plants to see if he could even make them grow.” Gavin told police that Grcich used marijuana but didn’t know of any other illicit narcotics he uses.
When police questioned Gavin about the narcotics found in her purse with her expired drivers license, Gavin reportedly started crying and said that “when Grcich leaves the residence, she goes around and looks for illicit items and hides them from him,” according to charging documents. Police found a second purse with drugs in it as well.
Gavin and Grcich are each charged with four level 5 felony counts of possession of destructive devices, for reportedly having flash powder, a smoke grenade, a live practice grenade and “homemade destructive devices”; a level 6 felony count of possession of methamphetamine; two level 6 felony counts of possession of a narcotic; one level 6 felony count of neglect of a dependent; and two misdemeanors related to drug possession.