Number Of Meth Labs On The Rise In Local Communities

The Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office says that the number of meth labs were on the decline, but not anymore.

Investigators say that the number of meth labs have increased. And they are showing up in various forms.

Lately deputies and narcotics officers have found meth labs in cars, mobile homes and even homes worth an estimated half million dollars. On Wednesday, they say they found one such lab in the quiet Raven Wood sub-division in Boiling Springs. And it was just the latest in a large number that have been discovered.

Thus far in 2012, investigators say that they have found 20 labs in the county; an alarming number for such a growing problem.  

"That's very indicative of the ever growing problem with methamphetamine," said Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. Tony Ivey.

Investigators say that meth labs have moved from the rural, wooded areas and have started to become common place in middle class neighborhood.  

"Raven Wood is a very good community," Ivey said. "It's a very safe community and all it took was just one bad group of people to move into a house there and put the whole neighborhood at risk."

7 on your side asked law enforcement what they're doing to crack down on this problem?

Ivey said that the Sheriff's Office is keeping track of sudaphedrine, the main ingredient in meth, purchases. "If you have more than 12 grams of sudaphedrine and your caught by law enforcement, that's a felony right there," he said.

Spartanburg County is not alone in this battle. The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office also said it has seen an increase.

"We are starting to see a lot of what they call shake and bake labs," said Cherokee County Sheriff Steve Mueller. "They are portable. These criminals are basically mixing the contents up in 2 liter bottles."

In the past five months, Cherokee County deputies have shut down eight meth labs. In doing so, Mueller said that his office has found some effective ways to fight back. 

"We had one area where we had two meth labs in the same area," Mueller said. "We set up some video cameras. We are doing those type of things to be proactive."

It’s a fight law enforcement says it will continue to battle for one very simple reason.

"It’s probably one of the most, if not the most, addictive substances out there," Mueller said. "Once you get this, it’s very hard to just use it once and walk away from it."

Law enforcement says people go to great lengths to get their fix despite just how dangerous making meth can be.

The Sheriff's Office says it relies heavily on people calling in to report suspicious behavior in their neighborhood.