MAKING $1M OF METH A DAY

Enough Chemicals In West-end Lab To Level Six City Blocks:
'Wal-Mart' Of Drug Labs Found In Edmonton

A property owner checking on a tenant who was late with the rent
stumbled on what police are calling the "Wal-Mart of meth labs.''

At full production, the clandestine lab was probably capable of
cooking seven to nine kilograms of methamphetamine every four to six
hours.

In 24 hours, the lab could probably produce $1 million worth of speed,
said Sgt. Pat Tracy.

"It's a huge lab, and for Edmonton particularly, it's a super-lab.
It's like a large retail store."

The lab is the largest of about a dozen busted in Edmonton over the
last year. In a two-month sting operation which ended Nov. 18, RCMP
and city police netted more than $500,000 in meth from labs in Spruce
Grove and Edmonton.

Three men have been charged with numerous offences, including
trafficking and methamphetamine production.

Inside the bay-style two-storey warehouse at 17826 107th Ave., several
rooms were set up to handle the different stages of drug production.
The lab had been in operation in the last few days, said police
information officer Annette Bidniak.

"Investigators noted splatters on one of the walls that leads them to
believe an explosion had occurred, likely caused by improperly mixing
chemicals,'' she said.

Investigators found almost three kilograms of meth in the building,
along with numerous containers of dangerous chemicals used to make the
drug, including 60 litres of ether.

That amount of ether, if improperly stored or ignited, "could
potentially level six city blocks,'' said Tracy.

The property owner discovered the lab shortly after 11 p.m. Thursday
and called police.

He had gone to the building, which was rented nine days ago, because
the tenants were in arrears with the rent, said Tracy.

Police will likely be at the scene all weekend dismantling the lab and
cleaning up the building. A Health Canada chemist who specializes in
meth lab cleanups was flying in from Vancouver to lend his expertise.

According to the Koch Crime Institute in the U.S., meth lab site
cleanups can cost up to $150,000.

floyie@thejournal.southam.ca

FACTS ABOUT METHAMPHETAMINE

- - Women are more likely to use meth than cocaine.

- - A meth "cook'' usually teaches 10 others how to make
meth.

- - Every pound of meth produced leaves five pounds of toxic
waste.

- - Meth users are the hardest to treat of all drug users.

- - Meth kills by causing heart failure, brain damage and
stroke.
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Ran with fact box "Facts About Methamphetamine", which has been
appended to this story.