Booking And Cooking: Meth Cooks Using Hotel Rooms As Their Labs
EmailMethamphetamine "cooks" are using coffee makers and microwaves in hotel rooms of national hotel chains to heat the highly toxic chemical ingredients to make the drug. Ramada Inn, Holiday Inn, LaQuinta, Radisson and even the upscale Biltmore hotel chains in and around Atlanta have been used for making and dealing the drug, according to law enforcement officials. "It’s a misconception that just because you’re staying in a nice place, you’re safe from the chemical hazards of a meth lab," said Jesse Hambrick, Narcotics Agent for the Douglas County Police Force in Georgia. "It worries me no matter where I stay when I travel." Check Out Photos of Hotel Meth Labs. Hambrick has been fighting meth since 1994 and says hotel room labs are by far the hardest to bust, especially high-end hotels with scaled-up security. "It’s very difficult to do surveillance, very difficult to identify suspects in a car and very difficult to get past management that wants to protect the privacy of its customer." Public health officials say a minor chemical spill in a hotel could be deadly, not only for the meth "cook" but also for other guests staying in the hotel. Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage. "Phosphine gas is just one of the many highly toxic gases that can escape during the manufacture of meth. Emergency response has totally changed due to methamphetamine use, and yes, the gases can be deadly," said Dr. Raymond Fowler of the CDC in Dallas. The American Hotel & Lodging Association told ABC News Tuesday that the hotel room labs are very costly to the lodging industry. In a statement, the AH&LA said, "Methamphetamine labs are highly volatile, which is one reason why these labs are set up in hotel and motel guest rooms instead of personal residences. After the hazardous materials are removed by a Hazmat team, the clean up of the room can cost the property anywhere from $2,000 to $20,000." The AH&LA says it opposes methamphetamine labs in lodging facilities "as they are illegal and pose a threat to the safety of our guests, employees and the community." It says the industry is working with law enforcement officials to stop this activity and to ensure proper remediation of the methamphetamine lab chemicals and implements. Two weeks ago, the House passed a bill requiring the federal government to develop guidelines for cleaning up former meth labs. The bill is now in the Senate for consideration. Methamphetamine use is still the No. 1 drug problem in many communities across the United States, according to DEA officials. The number of labs in the U.S., however, has decreased due to the nationwide ban on over-the-counter pseudoephedrine put in place last year. Today 80 percent of the meth used in the U.S. is manufactured in "superlabs" in Mexico and is trafficked across the border. The dealers then sell it to individuals, often out of hotel rooms, according to DEA.
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Interesting, but it sounds like only 5% of total meth produced (if even that much) is made in hotels or motels.
Why not report on that 80%? Afraid that it will make Illegal Aliens look like criminals?
Posted by: JelloBiafra | February 21, 2007, 11:21 am 11:21 am
While it is no surprise that meth dealers/addicts are using hotel rooms to do their business, it is a little surprising that they are going into such upscale hotels.
Posted by: Peter | February 21, 2007, 11:40 am 11:40 am
We need meth detectors so we know we are safe when traveling.
Posted by: lld | February 21, 2007, 12:25 pm 12:25 pm
this is out of control…. what one will go thru to get a buzz… so whats wrong with a nice glass of red wine?
Posted by: craig | February 21, 2007, 1:22 pm 1:22 pm
Hmm. Meth detectors? That is an excellent idea. Someone could make a boatload of money that way. We have carbon monoxide detectors on every floor of our house.
It doesn’t surprise me at all that they’re using upscale hotels- do you really think the motel by the interstate is going to protect your privacy? Nope, but an expensive one will. Let’s see, since they’re already drug dealers, they might as well be ID thieves too- so they use a stolen credit card to get a hotel room, make a bunch of drugs, and then leave by the time it’s reported stolen.
Posted by: Jennifer L | February 21, 2007, 1:29 pm 1:29 pm
Back in ’78 until ’81 I had a meth problem. Furthest thing from me now. But, back in the day I dealt with someone that stayed in different hotels in the Philadelphia are and one would call this number to find out where he was staying any particular day. Quite often he would stay at the Bellvue-Stratford.
Posted by: John Cunningham | February 21, 2007, 2:59 pm 2:59 pm
mony talks every where, ofcourse drugstore hotels are everywhere.
Posted by: ferhan bugay | February 21, 2007, 7:12 pm 7:12 pm
LET’S NOT FORGET THAT THE HELL’S ANGELS MADE OR POSSIBLY STILL MAKE A LIVING CREATING AND SELLING THIS DEADLY DRUG IN THERE LABS. ALSO KEEP IN MIND THE PEOPLE MAKING IT IN HOTEL ROOMS WILL WILL END UP KILLING ALOT OF PEOPLE.THE QUESTION IS WHAT IS OUR GOVERMENT DOING TO STOP THIS?
Posted by: JIMMY M | February 21, 2007, 9:27 pm 9:27 pm
This was reported on FNC awhile back. And for those frequent travelers, a black light can be used to check if the room you paid for was used for Meth Lab. Apparently the residue from making the crap leaves a dust film that a black light will pick up. Just for your information!
Posted by: Christine | February 21, 2007, 9:50 pm 9:50 pm
This meth-lab in expensive hotels, has long been a problem. Its about time government does more to end this issue. The detectors sounds like a great idea. That wouldnt be hard to implement. Helicopters can detect when chemicals are in our air. As a recovering addict very knowledgeable of met, met-labs, meth -labs in hotels, and even in rental properties as well. I’ts not like the smell is undetectiable. And then what the chemicals do to the walls and everything is just outragious. Even clean up is’nt done by experts a person can rent that room and be affected my the chemicals that have seeped not only in the walls but everything in the imediate area. I remember visiting a garage that was used as a meth-lab on a regular basis the walls were just turning to dust and saturated with a yellow redish orangish color from the phosphorus. Even the meth when its in powder form is deadly. “A Snort of Draino Anyone”!!!
Posted by: Valerie | February 21, 2007, 10:50 pm 10:50 pm
Thank you for writing such an insightful article. I’m in a room in an upscale hotel right now on business. Nevertheless, I know that doesn’t mean I can or should automatically trust the surroundings or people here. It is too bad people use such places for destructive behaviors.
Posted by: Talia Shelley | February 21, 2007, 11:09 pm 11:09 pm
That is a very frightning truth that I do beleive that everybody should know. It is very uneasy to know that the room you might stay at could very well been used to make meth.
Posted by: Ryan M | February 22, 2007, 11:26 am 11:26 am
this is groos and horrible how can peopel do this
Posted by: eric | February 22, 2007, 11:46 am 11:46 am
I think the best way to end this practice is to force meth cooks to drink the stew they make, then burn their corpse in a haz mat incinerator. These people are nothing but parasites and they should be exterminated just like roaches.
Posted by: fly sny | February 23, 2007, 4:19 pm 4:19 pm
I’m a recovering addict and some people’s comments amaze me they are not educated on how this drug affects people and what addiction is maybe if they would do more research they would not be so blind. yes motel rooms are always top spot esp. when you can pay off the front desk people. So not only the goverment needs to do more, the police need to get other people who are involved including crooked cops.
Posted by: Rachelle | February 25, 2007, 12:06 pm 12:06 pm
I just moved out from my last apartment in January to escape a Meth lab that the landlord wouldn’t do anything about. I lived in the bottom apt. My new apt. is really nicer, but guess what?! The new guy upstairs is driving me crazy. I have ceiling heat so I thought I would be better protected here. Wrong again! I don’t get the odors like I did at the old place just the after effects. The cops think I’m crazy. Really, they even called my sons at 12:30 am to ask if they would have me committed, well obviously you can tell I’m not committed to the looney bin. Cops wouldn’t listen to them when they told them they’ve shared in my delusion. My neighbors are helping me out here vs the old place. There it was a 8 unit complex, just 2 weren’t tweekers, myself and one other tenant. Odds are in my favor here.
Posted by: Brenda | February 25, 2007, 7:55 pm 7:55 pm
It would be easy to manaufacture a detection device that could detect the gases produced when making the drug. However, I would bet that the industry would be totally against installing such a device considering the fact that if it were to go off they would have to spend a significant amount of cash to decontaminate the area. After all, its all about big businesses and their bottom lines these days, isn’t it?
Posted by: Mike | March 2, 2007, 12:16 am 12:16 am
I realy think they should look at the heightened meth production as a positive chance for a new tourism business, “Fine Meth Labs Of Mexico”. This could be like wine tasting and soon people would come from all around to try it.
Posted by: mm | September 4, 2007, 11:28 pm 11:28 pm