Lawmen obtained a search warrant to “recover stolen property,” said Chesterfield County Sheriff Sam Parker on Sept. 5 at a home just shy of the North Carolina line on Hwy 742, north of Chesterfield. But when they got there, a meth lab was discovered at the scene, as well as several stolen goods.
The Sheriff’s Office has not yet released the names of the suspects, as the incident is still under investigation.
According to lawmen, “The condition of the home was so horrific that we wore protective gear as much for the nastiness as for the hazards of the meth.” The interior of the home was covered with trash. The home was said to be filled with giant holes in the flooring, which allowed cats, rats and snakes to reside there as well. The outside of the home looks almost “normal” from the front yard. But in the back yard, trash was piled high, and spilled out of two broken down pickup trucks.
One deputy tried to describe the mess. “It was knee deep in …” He was at a loss for words, and shivered, before he simply said, “nastiness.”
Lawmen said not only were all the materials present for a “fresh cook” — manufacturing meth — but evidence of previous cooks were there as well. Because of this, and the fact that there is a pond in the back yard of the home, officers called the Department of Health and Environmental Control to test the pond for possible contamination.
This type meth lab is especially dangerous, an investigating officer said, “because the chemicals are so volatile.” He also said that nearly every user he’d come across has experienced at least one explosion during the process of creating this drug. “One of the last guys I talked to had lost a finger,” he said. “He injured the finger during a ‘cook,’ but didn’t have it treated. It got infected and then he lost it.”
According to an undercover agent working on the case, this lab is one of 35 to 40 across Chesterfield County.
— Staff Writer Karen Kissiah can be reached by calling 843-537-5261, or by email at kkissiah@heartlandpublications.com.
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