2 Men Arrested After Traffic Stop Leads to Drug Lab
A routine traffic stop led authorities to a makeshift methamphetamine laboratory in a motel bathroom and the arrest of two men on suspicion of drug manufacturing, police said Sunday.
About 3 p.m. Saturday, Officer Paul Kelly stopped a car driven by Michael Pierce, 28, of Riverside for a minor traffic violation near the Key Inn at 1611 El Camino Real, Lt. Joseph Garcia said.
While questioning Pierce, the officer learned he was staying at the motel.
When police searched his room, Garcia said, they discovered drug-making equipment and the ingredients for making methamphetamine.
Also in the room was David Mullen, 33, of Anaheim, who, Garcia said, was a “parolee at large.”
“These guys had just been there for a couple of hours,” Garcia said, “and it appears they had every intention of cooking it up right there.”
Tustin police evacuated other rooms at the motel and summoned the California Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement.
The men were booked at Orange County Jail.
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