A suspected shoplifting case helped Union City, Ind. police to uncover an active meth lab inside of a Winchester, Ind. home.
On Monday afternoon, Union City officers were sent to the Didier Hardware store to investigate reports from a worker that two suspects had shoplifted items from the store, according to a release from the Union City Police Department.
In the parking lot, officers found Shannon Mackey, 32, and Carolyn Mackey, 28, in a vehicle with a four-year-old child. Inside the vehicle were items that had been shoplifted from the store, including a bottle of lye, along with other items, including hypodermic needles.
After the shoplifted items were recovered, police issued a search warrant for the suspects' residence in Winchester, Ind., and during the search of the home officials located an active methamphetamine lab in the basement of the residence. Items used to manufacture meth, along with meth and drug paraphernalia were collected at the home.
The Mackeys and Brett Buck, 33, Megan Eicher, 28 and Michael Malinowski, 49, were taken into custody and booked into the Randolph County Jail on various, felonious drug related charges.
The Mackey's children, the four-year-old daughter and a nine-year-old son, were taken into the custody of Children's Protective Services prior to the execution of the search warrant.
"Anytime an investigation leads to shutting down a meth lab, we consider it a success," said Detective Chad Puterbaugh, UCPD. "Removing children from such a dangerous environment is even more important."
Officers from the Union City Police Department, the Indiana State Police Methamphetamine Suppression Section, the Winchester Police Department and the Randolph County Sheriff's Department assisted in the bust.
