Pubdate: Tue, 08 Feb 2005 Source: Courier-Journal, The (KY) Copyright: 2005 The Courier-Journal Contact: http://www.courier-journal.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/97 Author: Alex Davis Note: Only publishes local LTEs METH TIP RECEIVED BEFORE ABDUCTION Girl Said To Have Seen Drug Activity CROTHERSVILLE, Ind. -- In the weeks before the abduction and murder of Katlyn "Katie" Collman, police received one report -- and perhaps a second -- about suspected methamphetamine production at an apartment complex linked to the 10-year-old's death. Police have said they've been told that Katie was abducted after witnessing meth activity at the complex. Although the reported meth production was investigated, no arrests were made, even though officials said there have been concerns for years about possible drug activity at the apartments. The situation reflects the difficulty authorities can face in addressing the growing problem of meth production in rural areas. Crothersville Police Chief Norman Ford said his department has broken up at least four meth labs since October. But many drug producers move their operations daily, he said, and tips often arrive a day or two after production has taken place. "We can't just sit there day after day," he said. "It's gone by then." Katie, a fourth-grader at Crothersville Elementary School, was reported missing the night of Jan. 25 after she failed to return from running an errand at a store three blocks from her house. Her body was found five days later in a creek about 20 miles away. Last week, Crothersville resident Charles Hickman, 20, was arrested and charged with murder and criminal confinement in connection with her death. In an affidavit, police said Hickman told them that Katie was abducted to scare her and keep her quiet about the meth activity she had witnessed at the Penn Villa apartments in Crothersville. At Katie's funeral Sunday, an uncle said she had gone to the apartment to let its residents know their dog had been killed. Ford confirmed yesterday that one of the department's two officers paid a visit to Penn Villa about a week before Katie disappeared in response to a complaint about alleged meth activity there. A police officer and a drug-sniffing dog from nearby Austin also went along, but Ford said the officers couldn't find probable cause to search any of the complex's eight units. Ford also said his officer told him that a Jackson County sheriff's deputy had visited the apartment two weeks before in response to a similar tip. Jackson County Sheriff Jerry Hounshel said last night that he's unable to confirm that. Janice Hoene, who bought Penn Villa with her husband 14 months ago, said in an interview that on Jan. 4, she received a tip about possible meth production in the apartment that Katie apparently visited. Shortly after receiving the tip, she said she called the Jackson County Sheriff's Department, which relayed the information to the Crothersville police. She said she subsequently received a call from the town police saying that a visit to the apartments had been made but that no one had been arrested. Hounshel said he had no information about Hoene's call. Top law-enforcement officials said, however, that the reports of alleged drug activity at Penn Villa are part of a frustrating pattern in the fight against meth in rural Indiana. Hounshel said he planned to look into the reports that his department had visited the complex, but he said that the odds of catching meth producers are usually slim. The department has struggled to keep pace with the growing presence of meth in Jackson County, Hounshel said. He said he has 13 officers, and they must patrol roads, run the jail, serve courts and conduct investigations. Terry Gray, a spokesman for Katie's family and an assistant chief at the local fire department, said he was unaware that police made visits to Penn Villa. But Gray said it's frustrating that police weren't able to stop the alleged drug activity linked to Katie's death. He said, however, that he doesn't fault the police and that Katie's parents also wouldn't second-guess the actions of the agencies involved. William Nagle, a member of the Crothersville Town Board and a retired schoolteacher, said he feels personally responsible for the community's inability to stop what many call the drug's powerful punch. "We know there is a very significant problem with methamphetamine in this town," said Nagle, who was elected in 2003 and also served on the three-member board from 1992 to 2000. "We've been in denial too long." Gray is leading an effort to demolish the Penn Villa complex and build a playground on the one-acre site as a memorial to Katie. An estimated $400,000 will be needed to buy the apartments and build the playground, he said. Hoene, a real estate broker from Seymour, said she bought Penn Villa in late 2003 for $235,000. It has been difficult to rent apartments there, she said, and four of the eight units are vacant. She said the tip she received in January was the first time she had been aware that drug activity might have been taking place. No one appeared to be home at the complex yesterday. Several windows were broken, and one front door was propped open with a piece of brick. Inside, a broken railing was lying on the stairs, and a light fixture dangled from wires in the ceiling. Hoene said the units rent for $400 and have two bedrooms and about 900 square feet of space. The unit where the meth allegedly was being made had been rented to its current tenants for only a couple of months, Hoene said. If enough money is raised to purchase Penn Villa, Hoene said she has tentatively agreed to sell the complex -- at a loss. In addition to Hickman, two other people have been charged with making false statements to investigators. Police said yesterday that the investigation is continuing. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek