POLICE TO ADVISE RETAILERS ON METH

Todd Treese feels uncomfortable knowing that methamphetamine makers can get
many of the materials to make the synthetic drug from his hardware store.

Common household products such as starter fluid, paint thinner and drain
cleaner are among the ingredients used to manufacture the highly addictive
drug.

"We carry all this stuff," said Treese, manager of the True Value Hardware
store at 63rd Street and Grand Avenue in West Des Moines. "I don't like
that idea."

Knowing that meth manufacturers can do one-stop shopping at hardware,
convenience and grocery stores, five suburban police departments will

Heights will try to educate store employees about suspicious purchases that
might be used in making meth.

"What we want to happen is for retailers to just observe, document and
report suspicious purchases," said West Des Moines police Sgt. Jim Barrett.

When employees observe someone buying a combination of materials used in
the drug, police will ask store employees to save a copy of the receipt,
record license plates of the suspected vehicle and save store surveillance
tapes.

"We just want them to notify us. We don't want them to confront" someone
buying the ingredients used in meth, Barrett said. "Just because they're
buying this stuff doesn't mean they're making it."

Police will educate store employees about the ingredients found in the drug
and the materials used to build a meth lab, such as coffee filters, hot
plates and tubing.

The five police departments last year formed a west suburban narcotics task
force to investigate drug cases in the cities. Eight drug detectives work
together to target drug users and dealers.

The task force has seized more than 475 grams of meth since March.