INCREASE IN KANSAS METH LABS HAS AUTHORITIES CONSIDERING TASK FORCES

LYONS - Authorities in central Kansas are ready to start drug
task forces to combat a worsening problem with meth labs.

Rice County Sheriff Steve Bundy proposed the task force to Rice County
Commissioners this week after raids on three clandestine
methamphetamine labs within a week.

"Three labs in central Rice County in six days is a rate more frequent
than we care to have," Bundy said. "We're still fighting the problem
as much as ever, but we haven't been able to get on top of it."

Bundy will visit city commissions in Rice County this month to seek
theiassistance, he said.

He hopes each town in the county will allow an officer to give a
part-time but concentrated effort to the task force.

Bundy blames the prevalence of Rice County's meth manufacture on
several factors, including its mostly rural setting.

"Meth continues to be a drug of choice for manufacturers for several
reasons," Bundy said. "It is very addictive, very profitable and can
be done with great mobility."

For a $60 investment the return is better than $1,000, he
said.

"Also it's a fairly simple process that doesn't take a chemist to
make," Bundy said.

Bundy attended a regional narcotic task-force workshop in Wichita last
month that was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The audience included representatives of municipal, county and state
agencies throughout the Midwest.

The true power meth holds over users is "its horrible addiction,"
Bundy said.

"We're powerless to stop it," he said. "That's what they all
say."

Elsewhere in the region, McPherson County Sheriff Larry Powell said
his county has had an organized group for many years.

Meth is a major problem all across Kansas, Powell said.

"Since the first of the year we've had 21 meth labs," Powell said.
"There are investigations going on as we speak. We know what's going
on out there, but it takes time to get all the information we need to
obtain a search warrant."

Pratt County Sheriff Vernon Chinn said he has been approached by
Harper County Sheriff Kirk Rogers to explore the possibility of a drug
task force made up from several smaller counties in that judicial
district, including Sumner, Harper, Barber, Pratt and Kingman
counties, though no formal steps have been taken.

Much of the drug activity in that county is meth-related, Chinn said.
Last year Pratt County busted more than 20 meth labs.

"A drug task force is a great tool in my opinion," Chinn said. "They
work well."