ANHYDROUS AMMONIA METHAMPHETAMINE LABS ON THE RISE

Manufacturers Find Way Around The Law, Officials Say

ROGERS - Manufacturers of methamphetamine have figured a way to
bypass laws monitoring the sale of crucial items needed to produce
the illegal substance, officials said.

The Methamphetamine Precursor Control Act of 2005 forced cold and
allergy medicines containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine off store
shelves and behind pharmacy counters and put strict limits on the
amount sold.

The Benton County Sheriff's Office has monitored databases which
collect the names of residents who purchase large quantities of
crucial ingredients needed to manufacture meth.

Now dealers offer their buyers a small amount of the finished product
in return for raw ingredients needed to make meth, including cold and
allergy pills, said Capt. Mike Sydoriak, of the Sheriff's Office.

This means a greater number of residents purchase the
over-the-counter drug for the meth manufacturer, Sydoriak said.

After the Precursor Control Act was passed, stores created a database
containing the number of cold and allergy medicines residents
purchase. Local law enforcement officials routinely request updated
copies of the database to track possible methamphetamine production
in the county, said Sgt. Jared Crabtree, who is assigned to the
Sheriff's Office's Narcotics Division.

It is unlawful for a resident to purchase more than three packages or
5 grams of ephedrine or 9 grams of pseudoephedrine, whichever amount
is smaller, within any 30-day period, according to the law.

How many of the providers have the databases networked was unknown
Wednesday, said Deputy Doug Gay, public information officer for the
Sheriff's Office.

This year deputies have raided 13 methamphetamine labs in the first
three months of this year compared with nine labs in all of 2007,
said Crabtree.

Ten of the 13 labs used anhydrous ammonia in the production of
methamphetamine. The other three used red phosphorus.

The increase in the production of anhydrous ammonia-based
methamphetamine is also on the rise in the county, officials said.
The ammonia-based meth requires cold and allergy medication, ammonia
and lithium strips from batteries.

The red phosphorus type of methamphetamine, which was in the typical
lab found in the county until recently, requires red phosphorus found
on matchsticks, iodine, and cold and allergy medications.
Manufacturers are switching to the ammonia-based methamphetamine
since police were tracking them from the iodine sales, Crabtree said.

The ingredients used for both versions of methamphetamine are
different but the chemical process is similar, Crabtree said.

One hypothesis on why meth production is on the rise is because
people are no longer afraid their names will be tracked on pharmacy
lists, Crabtree said.

Both methods of production are dangerous but the ammonia-based meth
is poisonous, flammable, emits toxic vapors, can be absorbed into the
skin and cause lung or tissue damage or pulmonary arrest, Crabtree
said.

The ammonia is commonly found in crop fertilizer. Manufacturers also
make their own ammonia within the methamphetamine lab using
fertilizer and sodium hydroxide, Crabtree said.

The Sheriff's Office received information Tuesday regarding a new
database offered for free by the government to track cold and allergy
medication purchases, Sydoriak said.

The database is provided by www.leadsonline.com which the department
already pays $1,800 a year in order to use their system to find
stolen property in pawnshops, he said.

Authorities are still researching the offer, Sydoriak said.