THEFTS OF LEGAL FERTILIZER FOR USE IN METH PRODUCTION PRESENT
CHALLENGE TO POLICE

PILOT GROVE, Mo. - It has become a routine part of patrols for rural
law enforcement: checking on farm cooperatives that have large
stockpiles of anhydrous ammonia, a fertilizer often targeted for theft
by makers of the illegal drug methamphetamine.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol estimates there is a theft of
anhydrous ammonia at least once a night in Missouri, a state where the
fertilizer is legally used to improve crops and illegally converted to
an ingredient of meth.

Some farms have been hit on consecutive nights. At the Pilot Grove
Co-op in west-central Missouri, there were 13 reported thefts of
anhydrous ammonia last year alone, said Cooper County Sheriff's
Department Maj. Jerry Wolfe.

"The fact is that officers cannot be everywhere, and this is a legal
product for farmers, so even though we have regular patrols, thefts
still keep happening," Wolfe said Wednesday.

Anhydrous ammonia is dangerous to handle and can cause explosions,
burns and breathing problems.

Last month, a Springfield man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for
the November 2001 explosion of an anhydrous ammonia tank used for
making meth. The explosion happened in the back of his vehicle, and a
passenger who was badly burned died a week later.

Dealing with anhydrous ammonia thieves can also be dangerous for
police and other first responders.

In 2001, for example, two Vernon County deputies were treated for
breathing problems after a suspect they were pursuing turned and threw
liquid anhydrous ammonia onto them. The same year, the 230 residents
of Old Monroe were briefly evacuated when an anhydrous ammonia cloud
formed from a meth lab. Five firefighters were treated for breathing
problems.

Anhydrous ammonia is used by meth makers "just as you would put water
into instant oatmeal -- and it takes about that much skill," said Sgt.
Jim Wingo of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, training coordinator
for officers busting clandestine drug labs.

A Cooper County sheriff's deputy got lucky recently when he and a
Boonville police officer did an early morning walking inspection of
the Pilot Grove Co-op. They flicked on flashlights and confronted two
men trying to siphon anhydrous ammonia from a tank.

The pair and an accomplice waiting in a getaway vehicle were charged
with multiple felonies, including theft and illegal possession of
anhydrous ammonia.

"The officers were in the right place at the right time, but of course
we cannot be everywhere and this is a growing problem," Wolfe said.

Wolfe said farm cooperatives in Cooper County reported more than 40
anhydrous ammonia thefts last year. Five years ago, such thefts were
almost unheard of.

Pat Oswald, assistant manager of the Pilot Grove Co-op, said he can
tell when someone has jumped the facility's locked fence to steal the
fertilizer because hoses for siphoning are tossed on the ground during
quick getaways.

"I'd say we see something like this every two weeks," Oswald said.
"There are ways to lock these tanks, but not locks that a $10 set of
bolt cutters cannot get through."