The Commerce Police Department has identified three suspects arrested Tuesday in connection with an alleged meth operation in a house at 260 Spring Street.
Police raided the small brown frame house early Tuesday morning.
Detective Sgt. Steve Condor said officers received a tip that methamphetamine was being sold from the house. After gathering further evidence, officer executed a search warrant at about 4:30.
The suspects are William Tuney, two counts of manufacturing methamphetamine, two counts of conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine, one count of possession of methamphetamine, one count of possession of tools for the commission of a crime and one count of misdemeanor possession of marijuana; Melissa Elkins, two counts of manufacturing methamphetamine and two counts of conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine; and Marion Herrington, two counts of conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine and one count of misdemeanor possession of marijuana. Tuney and Herrington were arrested at the scene; Elkins was picked up at a residence in Madison County.
“We found supplies on her that implicated her in the manufacturing process,” said Lt. Ken Harmin, head of the department's criminal investigation unit, “receipts for supplies, some of the things it takes to manufacture meth.”
According to Condor, Tune had been previously arrested in Banks County for the manufacturing of methamphetamine.
In addition to methamphetamine, Condor said officers found cut up lithium batteries, lye, salt, Coleman fuel, fertilizer and other materials associated with the manufacturing of methamphetamine. The smell – similar to cat urine — also permeated the house, Condor added.
Agents of the Northeast Georgia Regional Drug Task Force arrived at the house by mid-morning Tuesday, confirmed that it had been the site of a “meth cook” and, wearing protective “moon suits,” gathered evidence, which they brought out and placed on the driveway. The Drug Enforcement Administration arrived that afternoon to clean up the site, which is considered hazardous.
The Commerce Fire Department was also at the scene.
“We found remnants, leftover products and waste materials,” said Detective Vic Green of the drug task force. He said the evidence suggested that the lab was a “single-pot” operation.
Because of the nature of methamphetamine, meth labs are considered hazardous waste sites and can be expensive to clean up. Green indicated that preliminary observations suggested that the hazard was contained inside the house.
Harmon said officers, acting on a tip, visited the house very early — 2:00 to 3:00 — Tuesday morning to talk with the occupants.
“They noticed drug paraphernalia — saw a marijuana grinder, seeds, stems, marijuana residual, a bong — in plain sight,” Harmon explained. “That gave them probable cause for a search warrant.”
Officers stayed on the scene while others secured the warrant, which they served at about 4:30. Harmon said police recovered a 20-ounce bottle of methamphetamine — typical for a “one-pot cook.”
“That’s a lot,” he said. “It was definitely meth manufactured for sale.”
After the officers recognized that a meth cook had taken place and evacuated the residence, Jackson County EMS arrived with materials so officers could wash off any residue. No one was injured or treated at the scene.
