Deputies find meth labs deep in woods

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard

With Sheriff Jackie Matheny looking on, deputy Daniel Chisam points to where chemicals from a meth lab ate through the bag where they were stored. (Duane Sherrill photo)

A stakeout hit paydirt Friday morning when a pair of alleged meth producers were caught returning to the scene of the crime in the middle of the woods near Midway with one of the biggest operations ever found here.

The suspects, Johnny Argo and David Driver, were arrested Friday morning when they walked into the heavily wooded area off Caten Road, near where investigator Jim Hartman and deputy Kevin Murphy were hiding as part of a stakeout which lasted the entire evening before.

Argo’s wife, Toni Argo, was arrested a short time later when she was found circling the area in her vehicle, reportedly waiting for the men to emerge from the woods. They are charged with manufacture of meth.

According to Sheriff Jackie Matheny, the operation which led to the arrests began after lawmen received information meth was being made in the woods off Caten Road. When officers arrived the evening before, they found evidence of numerous sites where the suspects had produced the drug over an extended period of time. A surveillance operation was then set up which ultimately led to the suspects being captured red-handed.

Matheny said the men were carrying numerous items used in the production of meth on their persons, including phosphorous, mason jars along with finished product. Numerous items were already at the site of the lab.

Investigators believe the men had been producing meth in the woods there for several months given the numerous sites identified.

“They’ve probably produced pounds and pounds out here,” said investigator Jackie Matheny Jr. “There’s evidence all over the woods and fields around here.”

The sheriff agreed, saying the debris could be found over a quarter-mile area on the private property on which the men were trespassing. Additional lab operations, allegedly belonging to the suspects, were found hidden in the woods throughout the afternoon as lawmen combed the area for more evidence.

“This is a big lick,” Matheny said, noting the clean up of the site will be a nightmare given its large scale.

“The potential for pollution of ground water and the property is large,” Matheny said. “We have so much hazardous stuff scattered all around here, it’s going to take quite a while to clean it all up. I haven’t seen anything quite like this.”

A hazardous materials team was due to begin work on the property Friday afternoon, after which Matheny said he believed the owner would likely bulldoze the area to make sure any lingering affects from the contamination are removed.