Published: May 01, 2007 11:24 pm            

Sullivan sheriff’s deputies bust meth lab

SHELBURN — Sullivan County sheriff’s deputies got a surprise late Monday night when serving an arrest warrant at a Shelburn home.

Douglas Leturgez, 50, of Shelburn was arrested after an Indiana State Police trooper compiled a list of 53 people in Sullivan County who had recently bought more than three grams of pseudoephedrine or ephedrine within a week. When deputies arrived at Leturgez’s home, Leturgez gave officers consent to search his property. Deputies discovered a methamphetamine lab in Leturgez’s two-car, detached garage.

Around 1 a.m. Tuesday, Indiana State Police Master Trooper J.D. Goldner arrived at the property to dismantle the lab.

“Leturgez didn’t have a finished product that I could find, but he was in the last stages of getting that product,” Goldner said. “The only thing he had left to do was gas the product. … All he had to do was add the hydrochloric acid. That’s the phase he was at. We found close to every precursor you need to manufacture meth.”

Goldner said he did find traces of meth in a container on Leturgez’s property.

Leturgez was booked into the Sullivan County jail Tuesday with bail set at $12,200.

He was arrested on allegations of manufacturing methamphetamine, a class-B felony; possession of methamphetamine, a class-D felony; reckless possession of paraphernalia, a misdemeanor; possession of anhydrous ammonia in an unapproved container, a misdemeanor; possession of precursors, two or more, a class-D felony; and maintaining a common nuisance, a class-D felony.

Leturgez is expected to appear today in a Sullivan County Superior Court.

Laura Followell can be reached at (812) 231-4253 or laura.followell@tribstar.com.

        

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