Five Charged in Meth Lab Bust in Lexington

Lexington County law enforcement officials have arrested five in connection with a home-based meth lab near Gaston, SC.

Officials from the Lexington County Multi-Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team found the meth lab on Tuesday, November 19th. The meth lab included multiple active reaction vessels.

Those arrested and charged are Amanda Marie Jones, 31; Pamela Ann Masanovich, 44; Robert Joe McDaniel, III, 29; Charles William Reppenhagen, 28; and Albert Christopher Thompson, Jr, 44. They were charged with a variety of drug crimes including manufacturing methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance, and unlawfully disposing of waste from a methamphetamine laboratory.

Tips led Lexington County authorities to the home on Tuesday. Officers arrived just before noon, and smelled the characteristic stench of a functioning meth lab. Deputies entered the home and found several mason jars stores in a microwave in the bedroom. NET officers dismantled and disposed of the meth lab reaction vessels without incident.

Home-Based and Portable Meth Labs Becoming Common in South Carolina

An investigation reported by WIS discussed the prevalence of “mom and pop” meth lab operations in South Carolina. One law enforcement officer interviewed, Lt. Max Dorsey, says that meth labs operate in normal homes all over the state.

“All the cooks don’t have PhDs in chemistry,” said Dorsey. “Very few of them have high school diplomas.

“Meth in South Carolina is being manufactured in these mom and pop labs and they have been refined to these drink bottles. These two-liter, one-liter, or sixteen-ounce drink bottles, you put these ingredients in these vessels, you let the reaction occur, and you let it dry, and then you consume it, you smoke it, you snort it, you inject it.”

“You need some type of ether, whether it’s Coleman fuel or charcoal lighter fluid, ice packs, fertilizer, lithium,” said an undercover agent. “I mean these are all items that are fairly inexpensive and you can pick them right up at any pharmacy or Walmart.”

With the rise of portable meth labs, which can manufacture a small amount of crystal meth in a soda bottle, drug criminals are becoming harder to catch. They leave evidence of their activities in the woods, in backyards, in homes that they do not own or live in, constantly. However, because these new forms of meth labs are so small, they do not have to babysit several reaction vessels and more often than not get away.

However, meth labs are a huge health hazard. Cleaning up after one costs $6,000.

“A lot of times these environments are just terrible,” said Dorsey. “They’re dirty, they’re nasty. You find the worst things you could ever imagine in these environments. Many times, well, sometimes you find children in those environments who have been abused, mistreated, not fed, sexually abused, and so it is some of the most horrific environments you could ever imagine.”

The Strom Law Firm Can Help with Drug Crimes Charges for Meth Labs

Drug crime charges and meth lab busts in South Carolina are very serious. If you have been charged with possession, trafficking, or manufacturing drugs, including manufacturing at a meth lab, the attorneys at the Strom Law Firm can help. We offer free, confidential consultations to discuss the facts of your case, so contact us today by calling (803)252-4800.