EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WRTV) A domestic violence call for a husband and wife led to the discovery of more than 1.5 pounds of synthetic drugs in a home where five children lived, the Vanderburgh County Sheriff's Office said in a news release issued Monday.Deputies responded to the call sometime Sunday in the 800 block of Alyssum Drive, in the Bunny Grove neighborhood on the north end of Evansville near the intersection of University Parkway and Hogue Road. Neighbors told 911 dispatchers that a child ran to their house asking for help because his mother and stepfather were fighting.Deputies arrived and spoke with Taquoyia Lynn Abell, 42, and four children between the ages of 3 and 17. Investigators learned Taquoyia and her husband, Rex Thomas Abell III, 39, had been arguing. During the fight, Taquoyias 16-year-old son tried to step in, and Rex reportedly punched the teenager in the face. The boy had visible facial injuries.Rex had left the house with a 1-year-old child before deputies arrived.While talking to Taquoyia, deputies noticed a large plastic bag on the kitchen counter that they believed held synthetic cannabinoids. They also smelled marijuana inside the house. Detectives from the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Drug Task Force arrived, and a judge signed a search warrant for the home.Inside, deputies found about 700 grams more than 1.5 pounds of suspected synthetic cannabinoids. They also found more than 80 grams of suspected marijuana, digital scales, and 9mm ammunition. Investigators said much of the synthetic drugs were within reach of the children living there.Taquoyia told deputies she did not know about the illegal drugs, though investigators found many of the items in plain view and in the bedroom she shared with Rex.Deputies arrested Taquoyia and preliminarily charged her with dealing a controlled substance, neglect of a dependent, and maintaining a common nuisance. Records from Vanderburgh Superior Court 3 show her initial hearing was set 9 a.m. Thursday.The Department of Child Services took custody of the children at the scene.Using the Flock Safety license-plate reader system, deputies later found Rex in a hotel parking lot in eastern Vanderburgh County. The 1-year-old child was with him. Detectives also found 2.3 grams of suspected synthetic cannabinoids, 0.3 grams of suspected fentanyl, and 0.6 grams of synthetic cannabinoid chemical in Rexs possession.Child Services took custody of the 1-year-old.Authorities arrested Rex and preliminarily charged him with dealing a controlled substance, neglect of a dependent, maintaining a common nuisance, domestic battery, and possession of a narcotic drug. An initial hearing was set for him at 1 p.m. Thursday in Vanderburgh Circuit Court.The courts put both Abells on 72-hour holds in jail. ...read more read less