Thurston County narcotics detectives found a methamphetamine lab Wednesday on the property of a Yelm man who was in jail on suspicion of abusing his wife, court papers state.
The 35-year-old man was ordered held at the Thurston County Jail during a court hearing Friday on suspicion of unlawful manufacture of methamphetamine while armed with a firearm, unlawful use of a building for drug purposes and two counts of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. A judge set bail at $10,000.
According to court papers:
The man’s wife called the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force on Wednesday to say she’d found suspicious items on their property, in the 17000 block of Pleasant Beach Road Southeast.
The man had been arrested at the residence Tuesday on suspicion of felony harassment, domestic violence; and fourth-degree assault, domestic violence. The man’s wife said that before police arrived, her husband was in the shed, “moving things in and out and placing things inside a trash can.” She “thought this was very peculiar.”
The man’s wife told police that when she and other family members looked in the shed the next day, there was “an extremely strong chemical odor.” They also noticed a “closed Mason jar with a brownish-colored liquid, a metal skillet with a locking top, a half-gallon plastic jug labeled ammonia, a bottle of drain cleaner with liquid, a propane tank, several pieces of plastic tubing, used coffee filters that appeared to be dirty, and a large cooking pot containing a large amount of dirty liquid.”
The man’s wife gave narcotics detectives written permission to search the home, and they found jars with clear liquid inside. During a search of a laundry room, they found “several baggies with a white crystal residue.”
Detectives obtained a search warrant for the shed and, with the assistance of the Sheriff’s Office, determined it was “a clandestine lab.” A loaded Remington rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun also were found in the shed.
Tests revealed the white substance found in the baggies was meth.
When detectives went to the jail, the man “admitted to using the shed to make methamphetamine.”
The man said the baggies of meth found in the laundry room had been purchased elsewhere. The man acknowledged that he wasn’t supposed to possess firearms because of felony convictions.
Jeremy Pawloski: 360-754-5445
jpawloski@theolympian.com
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