Staff Writer

Oct. 25, 2000 10 PM

The Pike County Sheriff’s Department has put another methamphetamine lab out of operation.

At approximately 6:30 p.m., Oct. 20, a deputy on routine patrol came across the operation off Pike County Road 104, Sheriff Russell Thomas said.

Thomas said the deputy pulled into the location known to law enforcement officers as a place frequented by drug users and saw a female and two males.

Gene Beasley, 44, of Coffee County was arrested and charged with carrying a concealed weapon and trafficking in methamphetamine.

Albert Carl Jenkins, 42, also of Coffee County, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) and possession of drug paraphernalia.

The female was not arrested, Thomas said.

In addition to the arrests, weapons, a vehicle, the drugs and paraphernalia were seized.

A SKS rifle, Charter Arms 38-caliber revolver and a 380-caliber Davis Industries pistol, a Ford 101 pickup truck, three grams of methamphetamine, over 500 grams of methamphetamine oil and items needed in the manufacturing of methamphetamine were all seized.

"It could have been a very dangerous situation," Thomas said, adding the combination of the firearms and drugs could have been a deadly mix.

He commended Deputy Kevin Childs for being "alert" and "recognizing the situation for what it was" so it didn’t escalate into something dangerous in what Thomas described as being a "secluded" area of the county.

Agencies assisting the Sheriff’s Department were the 12th Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force, the Department of Forensic Sciences drug chemist and the Drug Enforcement Administration.