Miami County sixth in state for meth labs seized; Delaware County at the top

Indiana State Police Sergeant Tony Slocum said the 2015 numbers are up by 12, with 40 meth labs recovered in 2014. Slocum said the increase in clandestine lab incidents for 2015 is a two-fold thing.

“We are recovering more labs because of two things. One, the partnership with the local media, newspaper and radio, that helps the public become more aware that these labs are out there so they can report them,” Slocum said. “The second is that our officers are finding more of them, especially with the recent efforts of the CLEAN team.”

The total clandestine labs seized for 2015 amounted to 1,452, which is 14 fewer than 2014’s 1,466.

Slocum said ISP has special training to make sure that clandestine labs are seized without any harm to the officers.

“Most meth labs put off a smell, and of course that chemical reaction is poisonous, so when we encounter a meth lab, or elements of meth labs, they wear those specially-made suits from head to toe that you would see in TV shows,” Slocum said. “They have special training to combat the different chemicals and even have physicals once a year to make sure they are healthy enough and have good breathing capacity to combat a meth lab.”

291 children were identified as being inside of a clandestine lab environment, which is down from 362 in 2014.

“Often times you see people in those labs get hurt because of those chemicals, and often times with children too because they are living there and breathing in that poison,” Slocum said.

Since the recent initiatives of the CLEAN team, and other law enforcement initiatives, Slocum said he has seen more ‘one-man’ meth labs that are located in remote areas because meth manufactures are starting to learn that there is a higher risk of getting caught if a clandestine lab is functioning in their home.

“Sometimes they will go out in the woods and make meth in a Gatorade bottle or a mason jar,” Slocum said.