Pubdate: Tue, 28 Jun 2005
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2005 The Vancouver Sun
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Doris Sun

METH LAB FOUND IN POINT GREY HOUSE SHOCKS NEIGHBOURS

Police Have Since Had The $1.6-Million House, Which Had Been Sublet,
Boarded Up

VANCOUVER - The police drug squad removed toxic chemicals Monday
afternoon from what it called one of the largest methamphetamine labs
it has ever found, located in a $1.6-million house in West Point Grey.

Between Saturday afternoon and Monday afternoon, when the house at
4659 Belmont containing the lab was boarded up, most of the 4600-block
of Belmont Avenue had been roped off.

Earlier Monday, the drug squad and a contracted waste removal company,
Hazco Environmental Services, were at the house to assess the toxicity
levels.

In an interview before the chemicals were removed and the house
boarded up, Insp. Dave Nelmes of the Vancouver police drug section
said: "We'll look at disposal, identification of the chemicals --
we're hoping they'll be able to assist us in determining where these
chemicals came from."

Workers wore protective body suits, masks and gloves as they worked
around the house.

Nelmes said both floors of the roughly 2,500-square-foot house were
full of various chemicals used to make methamphetamines, including 80
kilograms of red phosphorus and 85 litres of solvents.

He said red phosphorus is especially dangerous because when it is
heated, it can ignite when it contacts air under certain conditions.
Some of the seized chemicals give off toxic fumes, he added.

Nelmes said it is difficult to tell how much meth could have been
created at the house but said labs of this size could create in excess
of 4.5 kilograms (10 pounds) of meth in one production cycle.

Police were called to the house Saturday afternoon after a man who
rented the house from its owners and sublet it to others noticed
beakers and other lab paraphernalia in the basement.

Const. Tim Fanning of Vancouver police said the suspects fled the
property, never coming face-to-face with their landlord.

"They were in the middle of working. The suspects were disturbed by
this man coming home so that's why a lot of this stuff was left behind."

The landlord called police, and after police arrived, they evacuated
the houses on each side of the lab house and called the fire department.

Only the neighbouring houses were evacuated because there was no
danger of an explosion.

Fanning said police were surprised to find the lab in such a wealthy
area of Vancouver.

"They can show up anywhere. This is certainly the first one we've seen
in such an affluent neighbourhood, but they can set them up anywhere."

Nelmes said the neighbours hadn't suspected what was going on next
door.

"A lot of the neighbours we spoke with [Sunday] night were surprised.
. . . "When we explained to them the concerns, they were quite alarmed."

The owners of the property, who also live in Vancouver, could not be
reached for comment.

The investigation is continuing and there have been no arrests.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin