RECORD NUMBER OF METH LABS SEIZED

It is only August, yet Shawnee County has already broken the record for
meth lab seizures it set last year.

Kansas Bureau of Investigation spokesman Kyle Smith said this county
accomplished the equivalent of "winning an ugly contest" last year by
recording 59 seizures -- the most of any county in the state -- of labs
used to make the illegal drug methamphetamine.

This year has been even uglier.

The Shawnee County Sheriff's Office and Topeka Police Department report
they have already seized 36 meth labs each, for a total of 72.

Law enforcement officials say the increased number of seizures is a good
thing because it shows residents are doing a better job of alerting police
to potential meth labs, while officers are getting better at finding the labs.

But a sheriff's deputy who investigates drug crimes says that on a more
negative note, the increase shows the meth problem here is as widespread as
it has ever been.

"There was a time when we pretty much knew who all the cooks were," said
Deputy Akim Reynolds. "That's not the case any more."

Methamphetamine is produced in clandestine labs by "cooks" who usually have
no chemistry training. Authorities say the operations are typically low
rent and low tech. Some meth labs are so small they can be stored in a box.

Reynolds said meth cooks in Shawnee County favor a method that uses the
chemical anhydrous ammonia, which they often steal from tanks in rural
areas. All other ingredients in that recipe can be purchased at retail
stores, including cold or allergy pills.

As the word has gotten out that meth labs often smell of ether or anhydrous
ammonia, Reynolds and Topeka police Lt. John Sidwell say residents have
done a good job of calling to report chemical smells that turn out to come
from meth labs.

Law enforcement hopes for further help in the fight against meth from a
Kansas program that asks retailers to sell potential ingredients from
behind the counter instead of putting it on shelves.

The Meth Watch program, launched in May, asks retailers to move Sudafed and
other products containing ingredients used to cook meth off their shelves
to prevent would-be meth-makers from stealing them.

Other retailers have opted to limit the amount of those products that can
be purchased at one time to prevent meth-makers from buying ingredients in
the large quantities they need. Reynolds estimated 16 boxes of cold tablets
would be necessary to make an ounce of meth, which would take less than an
hour to cook and would have a street value of about $2,800.

Sidwell applauded the increased involvement by retailers, saying he has
heard stories about thieves stealing entire supplies of Sudafed off shelves.

"Sudafed has an ingredient that is necessary to make meth," Sidwell said.
"Taking away the main ingredient or making it harder to get the ingredients
should reduce the amount being made."

But Reynolds noted that some local retailers still sell Sudafed off their
shelves.

As long as that continues, he said, meth cooks will "just keep bouncing
from place to place" to find a store where they can buy -- or steal --
ingredients.

To report a possible meth lab, call Topeka police at 368-9464, the Shawnee
County Sheriff's office at 368-2200 or the KBI at (800) KS- CRIME (572-7463).