Cold Medicine Laws Helping Stop Meth Problem
By: Lisa Carr
Updated: March 14, 2008
Local narcotics officers say the laws restricting the purchase of some cold medicines are helping the fight against Lubbock's meth problem and they're making the arrests to prove it.
Gregory Bell, Mikhael Elliot, Stephanie Marlow, and Crystal Martinez are all charged with possessing certain chemicals with intent to manufacture. By law, customers can only buy about 3 grams of pseudoephredine in a single purchase and that purchase is recorded in a log. Authorities say pharmacists in Lubbock called them when these same four names appeared in their logs repeatedly. DPS narcotics officers tracked the suspects and caught them with dozens of grams of pseudoephredine they had bought in one afternoon at several area pharmacies. The officers say they also found other paraphenalia for running a meth lab in the suspects' car and home. Corporal John Gonzalez with DPS says having customers sign for the pseudoephedrine allows authorities to catch meth manufacturers before they get the chance to produce the illegal drug and sell it to addicts.
All four suspects remain in the Lubbock County Jail under $50,000 bonds.
