Meth Lab Busts Up, First Time Since Reform

The state’s Meth Task Force says the seizure of make-shift drug labs is up 17-percent over last year. It’s the first up-tick for meth since the agency was established in 2005.

At the same time, when the state made it harder to get the necessary ingredients for meth, many users were driven to buying Mexican meth, called “ice.” Drug enforcement agents say the number of Tennessee labs dropped dramatically but the number of meth users didn’t follow.

Now that Mexico is cracking down on the sale of pseudoephedrine within its own borders, task force director Tommy Farmer says local meth cooks are shopping for it here. They rely on people who spend all of their time jumping from one pharmacy to the next. Farmer says on the street, they’re called “smurfs.”

“We have got folks that we have identified that have traveled great distances. It would really surprise you to see how far they will travel just to acquire the ephedrine.”

Buyers must sign a registry when purchasing drugs with pseudoephedrine, but the so-called “smurfs” have found several ways around it. Farmer says it gets more complicated when they cross state lines.

Other high-meth-using states, like Alabama and Indiana, report a similar spike in meth lab busts.