Burnet man arrested in meth lab investigation

By Daniel Clifton • Daily Tribune Staff

BURNET - An 18-year-old man remained in jail Tuesday after law enforcement officers raided his Burnet apartment and discovered a methamphetamine lab.

“We arrested one individual on three charges,” Burnet Police Department Investigator Matt Hartgrove said Tuesday. Hartgrove is assigned to Burnet County Methamphetamine Initiative Group that handles drug investigations. Along with the task force, Burnet Police Department and Burnet County Sheriff’s Office personnel assisted with the investigation.

Hartgrove said officers arrived at the location, 804 N. Rhomberg St., around 2 p.m. Monday after getting a tip from a maintenance crew working on the apartment complex’s air conditioning.

“They were working on the A/C and discovered some precursor chemicals for making meth,” Hartgrove said.

Inside the apartment, officers recovered several hundred grams of finished methamphetamine and other precursor chemicals, Hartgrove said.

Officers arrested Jamie Aguilar and charged him with one count of manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance between 200 and 400 grams; one count of possession and transportation of certain precursor materials with the intent to manufacture a controlled substance; and one count of possession of a controlled substance between 200 and 400 grams.

Aguilar was still in the Burnet County Jail Tuesday awaiting bond.

The apartment was located near a school and a church, which added “within a drug-free zone” to each of the charges, which could mean stiffer penalties if Aguilar is convicted.

Law officers and emergency medical personnel spent several hours at the apartment.

“I got there about 2 p.m. and didn’t get home until after 10 p.m.,” Hartgrove said. “So, we were there about eight hours.”

Because of the chemicals and possible dangers associated with them, other residents were asked to leave the apartments during the search and inventory.

“It was at an apartment complex so we had to evacuate other people as well,” Hartgrove said.

All three counts against Aguilar are felony charges, Hartgrove said.

daniel@thepicayune.com

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Burnet man arrested
in meth lab investigation