MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A Morgantown man had more than 60 meth labs in one apartment house according to police who busted those labs Thursday.
Garry Rayfield Shrout, 41, was charged with one count of operating a clandestine laboratory and one count of child endangerment.
Morgantown Chief of Police Ed Preston said they’ve been working on the case for some time.
“Mon Valley Drug Task Force working an investigation of a long-term meth suspect, they were able to secure a search warrant for 501 White Avenue, which is an apartment building,” he says. “As a result of the search, they seized about 65 one-pot cooks.”
Preston said residents of the apartment building are being looked after.
“Residents of the building have been temporarily relocated by the Red Cross and they’re in temporary housing. Code Enforcement has condemned the building because of the contamination.”
The building has nine apartment units and 13 people including five children had to be evacuated.
Preston said the clean-up of the building has begun.
“The Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health and Human Resources are going to be removing the chemicals and the contaminants within the next 24 hours.”
Preston noted meth labs are usually located in more rural locations because of the nature of the operation.
“We typically do not find them in the city; obviously the chemicals are extremely volatile, extremely dangerous, flammable and caustic.”
Shrout is in the North Central Regional Jail on $25,000 bail.