Five arrested for meth lab in Lockhart | Crime

JAY THOMAS

The Opp News

The Covington County Drug Task Force executed a warrant and raided a meth lab in Lockhart Friday afternoon.

The home, rented to Chester McKinley, is located at 21008 Cherokee St., approximately one block from the school.

Those arrested included Chester McKinley, Chester ‘Chet” McKinley, Philip McKinley, Kayla Sorrells and Sonya Owens.

DTF Commander Mark Odom said it was not clear immediately what charges the five would be facing, but he did know one was chemical endangerment of a child.

Odom said this house has been under investigation for a few months and that undercover agents have made several purchases of illegal drugs such as meth. 

On Friday, during one of the undercover buys, it was observed by the agent that a child was in the home where the meth was being manufactured.

“When meth is cooked, it puts off hazardous fumes that gets in the respiratory system,” Odom said. “Children who are brought up in a meth home will test positive 75 percent of the time.”

Odom said there was also a school age child living at the residence, who was in school at the time of the raid. However, both the toddler and the school age child were picked up by the Department of Human Resources and placed in homes.

The Opp News will update this story as charges and bond amounts are released and will also post mug shots of those arrested.