Gas stolen from a local business was possibly taken for a method of drug production

Authorities say gas stolen from a local business was possibly taken for a method of drug production that hasn’t been popular in a number of years. Around 10:10 a.m. Tuesday, an employee of the Edon Farmer’s Co-Op on County Road 5 in Edon reported someone had stolen anhydrous ammonia from a bulk tank on the premises. Williams County Sheriff Steve Towns said in a phone interview with the Bryan Times on Wednesday morning meth is the only thing that looks like what it could be used for but added that those kinds of labs have not been around here in years. Prior to 2009, anhydrous ammonia was frequently used to produce meth in bulk but the extensive lab equipment and noxious fumes from the chemical processes were hard to conceal. Smaller “one-shot” or “shake-and-bake” labs using soda bottles proved easier to transport and hide, and they started showing up in the area in 2010.