Three men were arrested in Glenleith, Dunedin, on Thursday in connection with the discovery of an alleged methamphetamine - or "P"- lab in a rented house at Hampden.
The vehicle in which the men were travelling and the Hampden house were investigated by the Wellington-based National Clandestine Laboratory response team yesterday.
About 20 police and scientists, including a drug dog and its handler from Dunedin, were at the unoccupied property, where half a dozen pig-hunting dogs were in kennels.
Hampden people were shocked a methamphetamine lab could have been set up at a property on an isolated country road, more than 500m from its nearest neighbour.
The owner of the Hampden fish and chip shop, Lockie Lockerbie, said people had rented the property for about two years, and he knew some of them as customers.
Other residents were not aware of anything untoward at the property.
"It's a bit of a shock in a quiet town like this," one woman commented.
The Ashburton owners of the Duncan Rd property could not be contacted yesterday.
Detective Senior Sergeant Kallum Croudis, of Dunedin, said while he could not directly comment on aspects of the case, more arrests were likely.
He would not comment on whether there were any gang connections, but said an organised crime group was behind the operation.
The arrests would not stop the supply of the drug in Dunedin, and police would welcome any information from the public concerning the distribution and manufacture of methamphetamine.
Dunedin police had cracked down on organised crime in recent months; including the seizure of a Mongrel Mob gang house in Corstorphine, and multiple arrests for cannabis-related offences.
Mike Sabin, a former police detective and now director of private drug consultancy group MethCon, said the drug was prevalent throughout New Zealand.
Unlike drugs such as heroin and cocaine, methamphetamine could be manufactured from everyday chemicals, with $2500 of ingredients capable of producing drugs with a street value to $1 million.
Police had dismantled more than 1500 labs throughout the country, Mr Sabin said.
• Mason Edward James Henare (28), shearer, of Mosgiel, Taurean Russell James McIvor (28), unemployed, and Adam Shelford Pomana (35), unemployed, appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday.
They face an indictable charge of manufacturing the Class A controlled drug, methamphetamine, at Hampden, on July 8.
Henare was declined bail and remanded in custody to September 6. He intended defending the charge, his lawyer, John Westgate, said.
McIvor and Pomana gave no indication as to their plea and were remanded in custody by consent to July 30.
METHAMPHETAMINE
• Has a range of nicknames including P, speed, pure, burn, meth, crystal and ice.
• Can come in a powder, a pill, or a crystal "rock"-like form.
• Increased use can result in paranoia, psychosis and extreme mood swings.
• Most is manufactured in New Zealand.
• Risks in the manufacturing process due to the poisonous, explosive, corrosive, toxic and flammable chemicals used.
• Some of the chemical processes involved in its production can produce highly toxic, deadly gases which pose significant safety issue for those involved in the investigation and clean-up process.
SOURCE: NEW ZEALAND POLICE
