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Authorities shut down meth lab in Tarboro

The Edgecombe County Sheriff's Office Drug Task Force and the Tarboro Police Department Narcotics Unit worked together to shut down a methamphetamine lab operating inside a horse barn behind a home in Tarboro.

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Heath Coffield
TARBORO, N.C. — Authorities in Edgecombe County on Wednesday announced their first-ever raid on a methamphetamine lab.

The Edgecombe County Sheriff’s Office Drug Task Force and the Tarboro Police Department Narcotics Unit worked together to shut down the meth lab, which was operating inside a horse barn behind a home in the 3000 block of Alternate U.S. Highway 64 East in Tarboro.

Officers said they were investigating two men suspected of selling the drug when they stopped their vehicle on U.S. Highway 258. Officers found meth in the car and determined that the drug had been smoked in the vehicle. A woman and her 2-year-old child were also in the car at the time.

Officers contacted the State Bureau of Investigation, which handles meth lab disposal and cleanup, and went to the home with a search warrant.

Methamphetamine, ingredients to make the drug, paraphernalia and a .22 caliber pistol were found in the residence, police said.

Jerry Harold Coffield, 48, and Heath Braxton Coffield, 25, were each charged with manufacture methamphetamine, possession with intent to sell/deliver meth, maintaining a dwelling for manufacturing meth, two counts of possession of meth, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of methamphetamine precursors.

Chelsea Lou Pelletier, 24, was charged with possession with intent to sell/deliver methamphetamine and possession of meth.

Investigators said Heath Coffield had recently moved back to Edgecombe County after living in Florida, where he was charged with meth possession. When he returned home, police said, he built the lab and ran it for about two weeks before authorities dismantled it.

Police said Pelletier came to the area with Heath. Her child was placed in protective custody, and child endangerment charges are pending against the mother, investigators said.

Jerry Coffield was held on a $435,000 secured bond. Heath Coffield was held on a $415,000 secured bond.

Pelletier was held on a $165,000 secured bond.

 

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