X

Ogdensburg man jailed without bail after city police discover 'multiple' meth labs during weekend search

Posted 10/20/14

Methamphetamine “one pot” labs containing hazardous liquid components were discovered in this trash can in New York Avenue Park, according to Ogdensburg City Police. OGDENSBURG – An Ogdensburg …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Ogdensburg man jailed without bail after city police discover 'multiple' meth labs during weekend search

Posted

Methamphetamine “one pot” labs containing hazardous liquid components were discovered in this trash can in New York Avenue Park, according to Ogdensburg City Police.

OGDENSBURG – An Ogdensburg man has been arrested and jailed without bail for allegedly manufacturing methamphetamine after city police discovered “multiple” meth labs and components used in the labs.

Joseph M. Bateman, 31, of 419 Mansion Ave., was charged with third-degree unlawful manufacture of methamphetamine and unlawful disposal of methamphetamine laboratory material, both felonies, police said.

He was also cited for second-degree criminal possession of meth manufacturing material and second-degree reckless endangerment, both misdemeanors.

The early Sunday morning arrest took place shortly after midnight following a search of two residences on Saturday by the city police Narcotics Enforcement Unit, according to Detective Daniel Mousaw.

Investigators recovered multiple “one pot” methamphetamine labs, as well as components of those labs, Mousaw said.

Also searched was a trash receptacle in New York Avenue Park, which is adjacent to a children’s public playground and Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center.

Police said they discovered more methamphetamine “one pot” labs containing hazardous liquid components in the trash cans, as well as other components such as a bottle of Drano crystals and sulfuric acid.

Due to the ongoing investigation, police did not release the specific addresses.

Bateman was held in police custody, arraigned Oct. 19 before Ogdensburg City Court Judge William Small and ordered held at the St. Lawrence County Correctional Facility, Canton without bail.

Bateman was linked to methamphetamine lab components, located at both residences that were searched as well as the trash receptacle in New York Avenue Park, police said.

The charges reflect items located in his possession, as well as from the locations searched, police said. The reckless endangerment charge stems from his disposal of the caustic and hazardous materials in the city park.

Bateman “put the public at risk, especially young children playing in the park,” said Mousaw in a prepared statement. “Bateman carried out a careless act, that may have yielded to someone receiving serious injuries.”

The Ogdensburg Narcotics Enforcement Unit was assisted by members of the St. Lawrence County Drug Task Force, consisting of the county Sheriff’s Office, Gouverneur Police Department, members of the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the state police Contaminated Crime Scene Response Team.

The investigation remains ongoing, and further arrests are possible, police said.