Pubdate: Sun, 16 Jun 2002
Source: Arizona Republic (AZ)
Copyright: 2002 The Arizona Republic
Contact:  http://www.arizonarepublic.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/24
Author: Becky Bohrer, Associated Press

FERTILIZER THEFTS, METH PROBLEM ON THE RISE

Ammonia Used To Make The Drug

BILLINGS, Mont. - Charlie Bumgarner didn't even know thieves had been just 
feet from his farmhouse. It wasn't until he spotted the siphon hoses near 
his two big fertilizer tanks that he realized he'd been ripped off.

"My father and grandfather had people steal fuel or tools," said Bumgarner, 
who grows grain near Great Falls. "This is something we've never had to 
deal with before."

Farmers like Bumgarner have become popular targets of criminals who steal 
anhydrous ammonia fertilizer to make the drug methamphetamine. They steal 
it in such small amounts that thefts often go unnoticed. And police and 
agricultural leaders admit they have had little success in curbing the problem.

But Bill Mercer, the U.S. attorney for Montana, said that could change in 
the next six months when officials launch a public awareness campaign to 
make farmers, their neighbors and chemical dealers more aware of the 
problem and what they can do to help prevent it.

"We've raised a lot of attention about meth. Now, we're at a point where 
we'd like to do more specialized training with this narrower focus," he said.

County sheriffs in north-central Montana, one area hit hard by fertilizer 
thefts, say they'll take what help they can get to catch the thieves.

"We're pursuing them as best as we can. But you have to take into account, 
a lot of these (theft) sites get very little traffic," said Capt. Dan 
Smrdel of the Cascade County Sheriff's Office. "Catching someone in the act 
is an exception. They can see you coming for miles."

Anhydrous ammonia is close to pure nitrogen and is used on a wide variety 
of crops to increase growth. In Montana, it is often applied in the fall or 
early spring.

Meth-makers mix it with ingredients such as paint thinner and cold medicine 
to make what police call "poor man's cocaine." The Drug Enforcement 
Administration has called methamphetamine the fastest- growing drug threat 
in the country.

Thieves have become increasingly brazen, sneaking at night onto farms and 
storage sites kept by chemical dealerships and helping themselves to 
samples from 1,000-gallon tanks like those on Bumgarner's farm.

They only need a little, often less than a gallon for a vat of meth, and 
just a few minutes to get it. Often they leave no trace behind. Other 
times, broken tank valves, spliced fences and dangling hoses provide clues 
to the thefts. But by then, the thieves and anhydrous ammonia are long gone.

Getting a handle on how widespread the problem is has proved difficult. In 
Montana, for instance, officials say they do not compile statewide 
statistics on thefts that are reported, and they believe many are not 
reported at all.

But Kathy Mathers, a spokeswoman for the Fertilizer Institute, a 
Washington-based trade organization, said the thefts have occurred just 
about everywhere there are isolated farms or storage sites.

"It is fairly widespread across rural America," she said. "It's something 
we've seen happen anywhere the product is sold at the retail level."

Police and Montana agricultural officials have been trying to alert more 
farmers to the problem and ask for their help. An important step they can 
take, authorities say, is to add extra security at their tanks and watch 
out for their neighbors' tanks.

"Responsibility falls to a lot of different parties," Long said. "Companies 
do what they can, and law enforcement, too. But there's only so much each 
of us can do."

"The problem is the desire for the drug," Mathers added. "It causes people 
to basically forget they have lives. People get so desperate they often do 
anything to get it. And, in the case of ammonia, risk their lives to get it."

Russ Miner, fertilizer manager at United Agri Products in Great Falls, 
warns of the danger of the chemical to anyone not trained to handle it.

"It's kind of amazing. These guys that are taking it, if you get it on your 
bare skin, it burns you," he said. "You just never hear about anyone ending 
up in the hospital."

Frank Schumacher said a major fear for him is having a thief get hurt at 
one of his storage sites. Thefts, he said, have occurred consistently over 
the past three years at the rural tank site of Farmers Union Oil Co. near 
Great Falls, despite fences, lights and motion sensors.

"They cut locks, open valves, cut fences. Those are things we've had to 
absorb," Schumacher said, estimating the financial sting at $5,000.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens