ECSTASY LAB DISMANTLED

Penthouse Operation 'Dangerous'

A "sophisticated" ecstasy and methamphetamine lab operating out of a
downtown penthouse suite overlooking city police headquarters was
dismantled Monday by a joint federal and provincial drug unit.

"It's unusual to have such a lab in an apartment complex. It's dangerous
... there's a chance of having a serious accident," said Staff Sgt. Wally
Dowhayko, head of the Windsor RCMP detachment's drug unit.

OPP and RCMP drug investigators, assisted by two Health Canada chemists
trained in dismantling clandestine labs, spent much of Monday lugging down
loads of chemicals from an upscale 21st floor residence at Westcourt Place
at 99 Chatham St. E. The Windsor fire department's hazardous materials unit
was on emergency standby.

Dowhayko said the approximately 10 chemicals seized, including mercuric
chloride, benzoquinone and ammonium acetate, are "very, very toxic," highly
caustic and even explosive.

He said police wanted initially to evacuate the entire floor but the
chemists were able to rig a cordoned off "hot zone" around the apartment.

Arrested Sunday night at a west side eatery and charged Monday with
production of a controlled substance were Ahmed Alzaidi, 32 and Marcella
Laframboise, 26, both of Windsor.

"A whole host of other charges are pending," said Dowhayko.

He said it could take weeks to fully account for all the chemicals and
materials seized and the total value of the illicit operation.

Dowhayko said that according to a preliminary inspection of the apartment's
contents, the lab had enough material to produce up to 9,000 ecstasy
tablets with a street value of about $300,000. About eight ounces of
finished methamphetamine, also known as speed or MDHA, were discovered. The
speed had an approximate street value of $25,000, police said.

Equipment for the production of the drugs was also seized.

Dowhayko said a second search warrant executed at a Windsor storage
facility netted a much larger quantity of chemicals intended for the
penthouse lab. A rooftop doorway from the luxury suite "offered natural
ventilation" for the operation, he said.

The couple lived in the apartment and the lab was located in a bedroom,
police said.

Dowhayko said the pair had been under surveillance for months.

THE EXPERTS

Two Health Canada chemists trained in dismantling clandestine labs were
among the experts called in to take apart a sophisticated and potentially
dangerous drug manufacturing operation in a downtown highrise.

Six members of an RCMP and OPP "clandestine lab unit" and five drug
investigators also participated in the bust at Westcourt Place at Chatham
and Goyeau streets.