A Homer road was closed for more than seven hours Saturday, when Alaska State Troopers conducted a traffic stop that led to the discovery and disassembly of a mobile meth lab in a vehicle driven by a local man.
A Monday AST dispatch says Timothy Igou, 26, was pulled over by Anchor Point troopers just after 2:45 p.m. Saturday at the crossing of Homer Bypass and Waddell Way. While the initial stop was due to a traffic violation, troopers quickly learned more.
“In the course of the contact, Troopers found (Igou) to be in possession of a personal use amount of methamphetamine,” troopers wrote. “Upon further investigation, Troopers found indications that Igou was operating a clandestine methamphetamine lab and producing methamphetamine in the vehicle.”
Responding authorities closed Waddell Way near the Homer post office as they dealt with the discovery’s hazardous and volatile chemicals. Members of the Alaska Bureau of Investigation secured a search warrant and confirmed the lab’s presence before dismantling it, with a hazmat team from the federal Drug Enforcement Agency later called to dispose of the recovered chemicals. Waddell Way was reopened at about 10 p.m. Saturday.
AST spokesperson Megan Peters says the closure was forced by the need to call in specialists to deal with the vehicle’s contents.
“Our troopers won’t handle that stuff without a hazmat unit being involved,” Peters said.
While the circumstances of the Homer case were unusual, Peters notes the increasing portability of meth labs and their components, including the so-called “one pot” models seized in recent cases.
“People carry them around in a backpack,” she said.
Igou was taken to the Homer Jail and held without bail on one fourth-degree count of misconduct involving controlled substances. Additional charges pertaining to the meth lab are pending.
Contact Chris Klint
