COCKE COUNTY, Tenn. — Tennessee authorities found three children locked in the back of a U-Haul box truck in Cocke County and methamphetamines, cocaine and marijuana in the front seat of the vehicle, WBIR reported.
The children -- ages 1, 5 and 8 -- were found in the back of the U-Haul on a day when temperatures reached 92 degrees, the television station reported.
A Tennessee state trooper arrested three adults from Hendersonville, North Carolina, The News & Observer reported.
Eric Larue, 36, Lakiza Williams, 40, and Willie Green Jr. each were charged with three counts of child endangerment, WZTV reported. Larue was also charged with not having a license, not wearing a seat belt, a lane law violation and not restraining children with a seat belt, the television station reported.
Williams was also charged with two counts of possession of narcotics and possession of drug paraphernalia, while Greene was charged with possession of narcotics, WZTV reported.
Officials with the Tennessee Highway Patrol said they were notified July 10 about small children being locked into the back of the U-Haul at a welcome center on Interstate 40, WCYB reported. When Trooper Eric Caudill pulled Larue over and asked whether there were children in the back of the vehicle, Larue allegedly said there were, the television station reported, citing a Tennessee Highway Patrol report.
Caudill found the children when he opened the back of the truck.