“There are a lot of people involved,” Smith said. “Everyone’s learned to make their own meth.”
Smith said there were many more meth related arrests in 2009 than the previous year and only a few days into the new year, a meth lab was found.
On Sunday, Jan. 3, agents with the drug task force located a meth lab in a wooded area off Mud River Valley Road about four miles north of Russellville. This was the second meth lab the task force had responded to at the beginning of the year.
After cleaning up the lab site, agents stopped a vehicle close to the scene for traffic violations and found methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and marijuana in the vehicle. The driver, Ladonna Pulley, 26, of Mud River Valley Road, was arrested Agents obtained a search warrant on a residence on Mud River Valley Road and discovered meth precursors, marijuana, a police scanner, surveillance camera system and a hand gun. These cases will be presented to a Logan County grand jury at a later date.
Smith said 2009 saw an increase in meth labs mainly because people have learned how to get around laws that attempt to control the purchase of drugs that contain ephedrine or esudo-ephedrine (one of the main ingredients in meth).
A few years ago, a law was passed that limited the amount of drugs that contain ephedrine or esudo-ephedrine that a person can purchase. However, Smith said, people now work around that.
”People are purchasing these cold tablets for about $8 a box and then selling them for up to $50 a box to meth cookers,” Smith said.
The Kentucky Narcotics Officers Association recently agreed to push for a law requiring a prescription for cold products containing ephedrine or esudo-ephedrine. Smith said that Oregon did this and the number of meth labs dropped from 500 one year to 23 the next year.
“It really did help,” Smith said.
Smith said a rural county like Logan is a perfect place for the production of meth.
“This is a prime area because we’ve got lots of anhydrous ammonia (another ingredient in meth) because of the farmers,” Smith said. The many wooded areas are also good places to hide meth labs.
Smith said meth is destroying the lives of many people and it’s not just hurting those who use it.
“One of the hardest things to do is watch the little kids cry when you’re arresting their parents and taking them to jail,” Smith said. And in those cases, at least the children are safe. The production of meth is very dangerous but is often done in the presence of children. A lot of those children may have cancer later, Smith said, possibly because of exposure to the chemicals used in the production of meth.
Smith told of one tragic case in Wayne County involving the death of a toddler. A two-year-old child was in the room while the child’s 14-year-old mother and 19-year-old father were making meth. They had drain cleaner in a cup and the child drank it. The child died two hours later.
Smith said all sorts of people, young and old, rich and poor, use and make meth. It has become the biggest drug problem in this area.
The drug task force often finds out about meth labs from people who call saying they believe they’ve stumbled across one.
One possible sign of a meth lab is the smell of ammonia or ether.
“If people smell something and they think it is a meth lab, they should call us,” Smith said. Callers can remain anonymous.
Many things used to make meth are highly toxic and if found they should not be touched. One item involved in making meth that is often found in ditches and wooded areas in is a bottle with a rubber tube coming out of it.
Cleaning up a meth lab site is also dangerous and exposes agents to hazardous chemicals.
With the increase in meth labs in the area, the South Central Kentucky Drug Task Force is staying busy. Smith said if you see something you suspect is a meth lab or drug paraphernalia, call the task force at 725-4972.
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