RIG PUTS METH LABS IN THE TANK

Methamphetamine manufacturers, beware. You may find yourselves in front of
a whole new weapon in the war on drugs.

The North Metro Drug Task Force is making use of a retrofitted 1981
Peacekeeper armored personnel carrier to help protect officers as they raid
meth labs.

The Federal Heights Police Department acquired the bulletproof vehicle
about two years ago as part of a military-surplus program. But the carrier,
which had been used by the Air Force, required a significant amount of work
and has been in operation for only a year, said Deputy Police Chief Mitch
Lovett.

The task force has borrowed the vehicle for at least three drug raids since
January, said Lt. Lori Moriarty, who considers it a valuable resource.

"It's pretty much solid steel," she said. "It's perfect for fortified
buildings or if you want to get up very close but you're afraid of shots
coming through cars."

On Tuesday, officers used the Peacekeeper to ram through a fence at a
suspected lab in the 6300 block of Brighton Road. SWAT team members
followed the carrier, fanning across the property.

Five different meth labs were uncovered, Moriarty said, and five people
were taken into custody.

Lovett said the 8,000-pound vehicle cost about $5,000 to retrofit. Much of
the work was performed by officers, and some parts were donated from local
businesses, he said. The rest of the money came from the drug-forfeiture fund.

Boulder and Pueblo have similar vehicles, which are used primarily in
tactical situations.

Drug task force officials said that the carrier is not appropriate for
every meth-lab raid, but pointed out that the manufacturing business is
becoming more prevalent - and more dangerous.

"We're finding a lot more violence and more weapons," Moriarty said.