81 Year-Old Grannie Busted in Drug Raid

On Thursday, March 30^th, United States Drug Enforcement Administration agents, the U.S. Marshals Service, and undercover police officers in Mobile, Alabama arrested 27 people in connection with a string of drug raids. 81 year-old Margie Steiner was one of those people.


MARGIE'S STORY

Fifty-four people were initially targeted in the drug raid initiated by the Mobile County Sheriff's Office. Bayou La Batre Police Chief John Joyner claims that weeks prior, officials received tips from an informant that the elderly woman was dealing drugs.

Per the police department, Margie Steiner, was secretly videotaped two nights before Thursday's raid---selling crack cocaine. Additionally, per reports, undercover officers also purchased crack from Steiner's 39 year-old daughter, Rhonda Tate, and two other individuals identified as Tate's friends.

Police Chief Joyner states that the 81 year-old woman has owned for many years, several of the "wooden shotgun houses" that pepper the area near hers. Per Joyner, Steiner has been renting the dilapidated homes for approximately $300 per month. Police claim that while Steiner has no criminal history, she has often complained over the years, about the drug activity in the area; her complaints have centered largely on the tenants occupying her houses.

THE BUST

The bust at Steiner's Mallette Street home was actually one of many. As a result of the busts, 27 people have been arrested, which ten additional ones already in custody on various violations.

Joyner states of the arrests: "That's pretty decent. It's more than I was expecting, to tell the truth."