Police: Working Meth Lab Taken Down in Bushkill Township Woods

A confidential informant led authorities to a working methamphetamine lab -- boiling liquid and all -- in a wooded area of Bushkill Township, according to police. The informant was also able to name the three men allegedly responsible for the lab. 

, with the assistance of the Northampton County Drug Task Force, arrested Curtis J. Buskirk, 27, and Ricky L. Miller, 52, both of the 300 block of Old Allentown Road in Bushkill, and Martin J. Wilmer, 52, of 63 Hickory Hills Drive, Moore Township.

When the alleged lab was handed over to a forensic scientist with the Pennsylvania State Police, she determined there were 712 grams of methamphetamine "or parts thereof" submitted to her for analysis, according to a police criminal complaint.

The men, who are facing a slew of drug charges, were arraigned in front of District Judge Todd Strohe of Bangor late Wednesday.

Miller was sent to Northampton County Prison after failing to post 10 percent of $25,000 bail.

Buskirk and Wilmer were still being arraigned around midnight. No bail information was available.

According to a police criminal complaint:

On June 18 at about 5:20 p.m., Sgt. Michael Enstrom of contacted Bushkill Township Police. According to Enstrom, a confidential informant had reached out to him to discuss an active methamphetamine lab. The lab, the informant said, was in the wooded area near the 300 block of Old Allentown Road in Bushkill. 

The informant said the men -- identified as Buskirk, Miller and Wilmer -- had walked into the wooded area carrying duffle bags.

At 7:09 p.m., after receiving written permission from the property owners to conduct a search, officers from Bushkill, Moore and Colonial Regional entered the woods and located an active methamphetamine lab. 

Among the items found were:

• An approximate 1 liter clear plastic bottle with a mixture of actively boiling liquid inside.

A tote bag that contained:

• A bottle with residue
• A bottle with tubing
• Battery packaging
• A grinder with residue
• Liquid fire drain cleaner
• Lithium batteries
• Bottle with liquid
• Drano crystals
• Iodized salts
• A bag containing a brown substance
• Coleman fuel
• Pyroil Starting Fluid

The informant contacted Bushkill’s Cpt. Michael McLouth and said the men had left the area with the duffle bags prior to police arrival.

The assistance of the Pennsylvania State Police Clandestine Laboratory Team was requested. The team confirmed the items in the woods made up an active methamphetamine lab. The evidence was collected and sent for further testing.

It was later discovered, through a check of records, that Wilmer had purchased one box of Sudafed 24-Hour from the CVS Pharmacy in Wind Gap. Sudafed is commonly used in the production of methamphetamine.

Video surveillance footage confirmed Wilmer’s purchase.

The State Police’s forensic team determined there were 712 grams of methamphetamine "or parts thereof" submitted for analysis.

On Wednesday around 6:20 p.m., police arrested Miller on the 900 block of George Street in . Later that night, Wilmer was arrested at a house on W. Central Avenue in East Bangor. A search of a neighboring apartment led to the arrest of Buskirk.

The men were each charged with:

• Conspiracy to Commit: Operating a Methamphetamine Laboratory (Felony 2)
• Conspiracy to Commit: Liquefied Ammonia Gas: Precursors and Chemicals (Felony)
• Conspiracy to Commit: Manufacturing a Controlled Substance (Felony)
• Conspiracy to Commit: Possession with Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance (Felony)
• Conspiracy to Commit: Possession of a Controlled Substance
• Operating a Methamphetamine Laboratory (Felony 2)
• Liquefied Ammonia Gas: Precursors and Chemicals (Felony)
• Possession of a Controlled Substance (Felony)
• Possession with Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance (Felony)
• Possession of a Controlled Substance

The following arrest information was supplied by Bushkill Township Police. It does not indicate a conviction.