Police find meth lab after resident's call

A township detective said criminal activity is a rarity at the campground.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
LAKE MILTON -- A concerned resident's call resulted in the discovery of a methamphetamine lab at a township campground.
Lt. Robin Lees, commander of the Mahoning Valley Law Enforcement Task Force, said this marks the third suspected methamphetamine lab discovered in Mahoning County this year.
He said the one found Thursday night in the camper at the Green Acres Lake Park was a relatively small operation.
The caller saw what he believed to be suspicious activity at the vacant camper and called Milton Township police.
Detective Sgt. John Bonish said he arrived to find the door to the trailer open and a hot plate with a glass cylinder on top and tubing attached. From training, Bonish suspected a meth operation and called in the task force.
Lees said there's been a big push throughout the state to educate officers about the hallmarks of a methamphetamine operation.
Not typical
Bonish said such activity is rare at the Creed Road campground.
"This is a very clean, very well-maintained facility," Bonish said. "They don't even let people under 18 smoke cigarettes here. It's a very, very clean campground."
Lees said that the investigation is in its infancy and no charges have been filed.
Glass beakers, mason jars and plastic milk jugs filled with clear fluid removed from inside of the camper lined the grass outside of it. Officers and agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Youngstown and Austintown police departments donned white protective suits to gather evidence from the scene.
Other materials were to be collected and disposed of by the Weavertown Environmental Group of East Liverpool, which is contracted to conduct the work.
Methamphetamine is a stimulant manufactured using household chemicals. Users inject, smoke and inhale the substance.
Chemicals used to cook it include anhydrous ammonia and ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, both common ingredients in cold and allergy medications, according to a Web site by the Ohio Resource Network for Safe and Drug-free Schools and Communities.