APD makes illegal alcohol bust

Officers arrested two men for selling alcohol out of an illegal liquor house, Atlanta police said.

Police arrested Carey Willingham, 75, and Larry Davis, 69, at a home on Napoleon Drive in southwest Atlanta after getting complaints from neighbors. Vice Unit Commander Lt. Scott Kreher told Channel 2's Amy Napier Viteri that undercover officers purchased alcohol at the home. They then got search and arrest warrants.

Kreher said investigators found thousands of dollars’ worth of beer and hard liquor inside the home.

"He has one big room set up with smaller cocktail tables and chairs and a TV for while they're consuming their alcohol. Then, he has a smaller area, a store where they can purchase their alcohol," Kreher told Napier Viteri.

He said it was the second time officers have come to the home. Before that, they arrested Willingham several times at a Sells Avenue address.

"What we see in the vice unit is crime kind of stems from liquor houses, not necessarily in the liquor house, but throughout the neighborhood," Kreher said.

Atlanta City Councilman Michael J. Bond said neighbors need to continue reporting activity to cut down on homes like this.

"I’m very conceed that we continue to be plagued by these bottle houses, liquor houses in the community," Bond said. "The police can’t do it alone without the information and cooperation from the community to supply information about criminal activity or suspicious activity."

Police said the men will be charged with selling liquor without a license, as well as operating a business without a license.