Police find meth lab hidden near Corbin city water tower; 17-year-old arrested

Corbin Police discovered a methamphetamine lab tucked away in a backpack Sunday near the city’s iconic water tower on Chestnut Street, and a 17-year-old boy is facing numerous felony charges in connection with the incident.

Patrolman Kirk Mays said police received a tip about the location of the meth lab around 3:00 p.m. Sunday. He and Officer Jeff Hill went to search for the lab beneath the water town and discovered it hiding nearby in an area overgrown with briars and tall grass. A short time later, they detained a juvenile they believe is responsible for the lab.

"I saw his head coming up over the hill and he stopped and looked at me. He saw the cruisers, so he started walking back down the hill," Mays said. "I took off running over there to make sure he wasn’t trying to get away from me and we detained him."
Corbin Police Sgt. Glenn Taylor Jr., who specializes in narcotics investigations for the department, said the boy has been under suspicion for some time for methamphetamine related activities.

"With him being right here in the city and being a juvenile, I’ve put extra emphasis on it," Taylor said. "I’ve said it since I’ve been investigating meth, there is no age limit to it. This case proves it."

Taylor said he believes the boy was a methamphetamine addict who has been making it for himself and some other friends. He said police searched a home last week, where the boy was allegedly staying, in an attempt to find evidence of drug activity, but found none.

"My informant said this backpack was there. They knew we were coming and started hiding it up here," Taylor said. "They don’t keep it at their house because they are afraid I am coming."

Taylor said MethCheck – Kentucky’s computerized database which tracks purchases of pseudoephedrine, a principal ingredient in methamphetamine – had no entries for the boy. He said some of the boy’s friends were listed, however. Also, he said the juvenile was involved in a traffic stop by police last week where they believe he was transporting someone else to go purchase pseudoephedrine.

On Sunday, police discovered nearly all the ingredients for making meth: tubing, salt, drain line cleaner, fertilizer, anhydrous ammonia, a funnel, a propane torch, etc. Also discovered was a large Mason jar that contained a "pill soak." Taylor said it appears that the "meth oil" most recently produced had already been poured off the mixture. He believes the juvenile was returning to the site to make another batch. He said there was enough pseudoephedrine present to make anywhere from 2.8 to 4 grams of meth.

Police would not release the juvenile’s name, but said he will likely face numerous charges including: manufacturing methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine, illegal possession of anhydrous ammonia, possession of anhydrous ammonia not in an approved container, possession of a concealed deadly weapon and public intoxication.

Since juvenile criminal records and court proceedings are not open to public inspection in the state of Kentucky, the News Journal could not confirm the exact charges.

Mays said the boy failed field sobriety tests. During a search, police discovered a pair of brass knuckles on him.

Police did not immediately question the boy since he is a juvenile. Mays said his parents or guardians would have to be notified first that he was in custody.

A hazardous materials response team based in London cleaned up the scene.

Mays and Taylor are continuing an investigation into the case.