Hampton police arrest mother, daughter on felony drug charges

A woman and her daughter are facing drug charges after Hampton Township police say they saw one of them visiting the home of a known narcotics dealer, according to authorities.

Hampton police detective Robert Grondwalski was working an undercover detail on July 27 when he said he spotted Ember Alt, 23, in a convenience store parking lot driving a vehicle with an expired registration, according to a criminal complaint.

The detective said he “was familiar” with Alt from a previous drug investigation and followed her vehicle to a home along Hunter’s Circle in the Devlin’s Point townhouse complex. There, she is believed to have met with a man who has “a significant history for drug delivery,” according to the complaint.

After leaving the home, Alt’s vehicle was stopped by a uniformed Hampton Township police officer who was dispatched to assist the detective.

Grondwalski said Alt of Hampton was driving the vehicle and her mother, Megan Alt, 53, of Verona, was the passenger.

He said he spotted a “rectangular shaped bulge” in the crotch of Megan Alt’s pants and called for a female officer to respond to the scene to search both women.

When the detective retrieved Megan Alt’s purse from the vehicle, he discovered three small straws that he believes are used to snort illicit drugs; an unlabeled prescription bottle containing two partial tablets of suspected Alprazolam, an anti-anxiety medication; seven stamp bags of suspected heroin; and several used stamp bags.

When the items were discovered, Megan Alt allegedly pulled out two “bricks” of heroin that she had been hiding in her pants and turned them over to police. A brick typically contains 50 stamp bags.

Ember Alt allegedly told police that she obtained the heroin for her mother to sell. When officers searched her purse, they found two small straws, nine stamps bags of heroin and several used stamp bags.

Ember Alt was charged with three counts of felony possession with the intent to deliver drugs, one count of criminal use of a communications facility and several other related charges.

Megan Alt faces two felony drug charges as well as charges of tampering with evidence and other related crimes.

The women were released on a non-monetary bond by District Judge Tom Swan during an Aug. 6 arraignment. A preliminary hearing on the charges is scheduled before the judge on Aug. 26.

The Alts did not have an attorney listed in court records.