NIGHTTIME RAID: RB WAGES WAR ON DRUG LABS

Neighbors gathered on 21st Street in Hermosa Beach, drawn out of their
homes by an onslaught of police carrying high-powered weapons.

They weren't surprised to see Redondo Beach police raid the three- bedroom
home with the white picket fence.

"My guess is drugs," said Terry Cook, who lives nearby. "I'm glad they are
here. I hope they get it out and keep it out."

Redondo Beach police said the house near Pacific Coast Highway was home to
the 15th methamphetamine "kitchen lab" they have shut down in the South Bay
and Harbor Area in little more than a year, another example in the latest
trend in the manufacturing of the drug commonly known as speed.

No longer, police say, are large clandestine laboratories restricted to
places deep in the California desert. Although those still exist, small
labs have opened for business in the suburbs, where users make what they
need for their personal habits.

The trend, Redondo Beach police Detective Dave Taneman said, has created a
danger for residents, who can fall victim to hazardous fumes and the
potential for disaster.

"A lot of (methamphetamine users) don't know how to do it right," Taneman
said. "That's why you have all these explosions and fires."

In 1990, police discovered 14 laboratories in Los Angeles County. In the
past 13 months, Redondo Beach police on their own have raided more than
that just in the South Bay and Harbor Area. Hundreds of labs are found each
year throughout Southern California, and police say they locate only a
fraction of them.

South Bay a `hotbed'

"Two of the hotbeds are the San Fernando Valley and the South Bay," said
Redondo Beach police Lt. John Skipper, who has made methamphetamine
investigations a priority for years. "These labs are dangerous and they are
doing them in motel rooms and in houses in residential neighborhoods."

Over the past year, Redondo Beach's Special Investigations Unit focused on
the kitchen labs, working to rid the region of as many as possible.
Investigations have taken the unit to neighborhoods in San Pedro,
Wilmington, Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach, and have resulted in about 30
arrests.

Cooking methamphetamine at home has become easy. Friends make half an ounce
to an ounce and share it. Police say the Internet has helped fuel the
do-it-yourself crowd, where recipes for methamphetamine and a host of other
drugs are available in seconds with the click of a mouse.

An Internet search using Yahoo.com revealed numerous sites with meth
recipes, including a list of ingredients. A necessity is ephedrine, which
methamphetamine chefs can pull from common cold and allergy medications.
State laws make it illegal for businesses to sell large amounts of these
over-the-counter drugs.

"Use only Vicks!!" one Web site explains, referring to the nasal inhalers
that contain ephedrine. "You need 12 of 'em, but don't buy 'em by the
dozen. Unless it's wintertime, then you can just say you're from some
nursing home and you're stocking up for the patients. Otherwise buy 'em two
at a time, if possible . . . the druggist at the drug store usually will
know what's goin' on if you buy quantity."

Skipper said Redondo Beach detectives have distributed fliers to pharmacies
for workers to watch for people buying over-the-counter medications.

The methamphetamine Web sites make it clear that the process is dangerous,
reminding cooks not to smoke while they work and to dispose of the byproducts.

"It's a good idea to do this when you're not f----- up," one site said.
"It's best to throw all the waste into the same bag and dispose of it
properly. This s--- is so smelly, you'll get busted by mom if ya don't."

On Thursday, undercover Redondo Beach detectives armed with information
that a "cook" might be under way at the 21st Street house prepared to shut
it down. The suspect, David Fucile, 52, was known to keep a .38-caliber
handgun in his pocket so a special weapons team with high-powered rifles
planned to move in first.

Police, accompanied by agents of the state Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement,
prepared to strike at night.

"Police! Search warrant!" SWAT team members barked as they burst into the
house. Inside, they found Fucile and two women, pulling them out and
placing them in handcuffs.

Although the home was in prime Hermosa Beach territory, it had no
electricity or gas, police said.

A small lab was found in Fucile's bedroom, Taneman said.

"These people sleep with this stuff in their bedroom - red phosphorous,
acetone, Red Devil lye," he said.

Residue Found In Bushes

Outside in the bushes, police found the gooey white residue of cold pills
used for the ephedrine, another example of the hazardous materials that can
cause trouble in the neighborhood.

Fucile was booked at the Redondo Beach jail on suspicion of possession of
chemicals used to make methamphetamine.

Police Sgt. Diane Goldstein, who heads the special investigations unit,
said more laboratory takedowns are planned. The goal, she said, is not just
taking drug users and dealers off the street, but to rid neighborhoods of
the hazard.

"It is definitely more for the safety of the residents because the
chemicals are so volatile," Goldstein said. "It's a problem and I think
it's much more widespread than even we know about."