TA-THREATS: 3250 Pounds Ammonium Nitrate Stolen in North Carolina

Winston - Salem police are investigating the theft of 5000 pounds of Ammonium Nitrate stolen between July 1st and July 5th from a fertilizer plant in the area. 1750 pounds were recovered in three different locations, police have no idea where the other 3250 pounds of Ammonium Nitrate is. Local authorities have enlisted the help of the FBI and BATF in solving the crime. There are no suspects at the time of the report.



The material was stolen over the independance day holiday and like many other reports in the past about stolen chemicals and gasoline tanker trucks the public reports of the theft has been delayed several days. Coming on the heels of Tom Ridges Homeland security announcement it would seem this theft is significant news. 3250 pounds of Ammonium Nitrate can make a very destructive bomb and many larger metroplitan areas are within just a few hours drive of Winston - Salem

Related News Links:
seattletimes.nwsource.com

Related AboveTopSecret.com Discussion Threads:
TA-ANALYSIS: EXCLUSIVE - Where is the Missing Fertilizer?
TA: ANALYSIS: Thermobaric and Fertilizer Bombs



[edit on 4-8-2004 by Phoenix]

Probaly being used to make meth- that is my guess.

Originally posted by Journey
Probaly being used to make meth- that is my guess.

Yup its one possibility, until eight years ago I would not have given it much more thought than that myself. Now nothing can be discounted until its PROVEN not to be a threat. Just the world we live in today.

I wasnt aware fertilizer could be used to make meth.

I thought meth was made from sudafed, benzene, ammonia, and lithium or propolyene.

I was taking Journeys word that it could - cause I have no knowledge of how to make meth, if ammoniun nitrate cannot be used in this fashion it would be good to eliminate this as a possibility for the theft - anyone up for an answer?

They just showed last week on the nightly news CBS,
were they had camera's set up at night at different farms.And catching people stealing the Ammonium Nitrate on
camera(to make Meth with) and most of the people they
showed were so wacked out,they would get it in there eye's
and be stumbling around blinded ,cause they didn't no the proper way to get it out of the tanks.

I happen to be very familiar with Winston-Salem. Those addresses for the storage locations sound more like its probably gang/meth related if meth can indeed be made this way. That, I wouldn't know.

Originally posted by Ambient Sound
I happen to be very familiar with Winston-Salem. Those addresses for the storage locations sound more like its probably gang/meth related if meth can indeed be made this way. That, I wouldn't know.

Thanks for the local info AS, lets all hope thats all there is to it. The meth connection could also explain many other occurences as detailed in Valhalls ATSNN Exclusive that I linked to in the story.

Whether it's being used for meth or not, that's still a lot of potentially explosive material. I watched a show on one of the cable movie channels about meth a few weeks ago, and the scenes of exploding meth labs were pretty sobering.

The money must be attractive because we had a case near my home where an educated man (wife knew him in school) and his wife were cooking in an outbuilding that caught on fire. When the fire dept. came he was acting strange about the fire, FD called police and when they entered house to investigate they found wife burning evidence in fireplace.

The sad fact of this story is that this couple had two preteen children that were taken by the state.

Mind you these people were college educated and in a middle class suburban neighborhood and the husband owned his own business.

Ruined alot of peoples lives for a short term gain.


spelling

[edit on 10-7-2004 by Phoenix]

As far as I can tell from a quick Google, anhydrous ammonia (the liquid form) is most commonly used in methamphetamine manufacture.

Ammonium nitrate can be used with some intermediate steps, but a chemist with enough skill to do it would likely be talented enough to earn money more easily (read "legally").

Link

I live rather close to Winston-Salem. I know a bit about the making of methamphetamines, trust me, they aren't using it for meth. Believe it or not they have come up with easier, faster ways of making meth these days. Much more useful for their supply and demand

Originally posted by deeprivergal
I live rather close to Winston-Salem. I know a bit about the making of methamphetamines, trust me, they aren't using it for meth. Believe it or not they have come up with easier, faster ways of making meth these days. Much more useful for their supply and demand

Question, do others agree with deeprivergal on this aspect of the use for ammonium nitrate?

If so we then should be on watch for incidents come the new news cycle on monday or tuesday for trucks or cars stopped in areas like Atlanta or Washington for seemingly minor violations, we as regular citizens will only catch a whiff of these type incidents if they do happen, be watchful.

Originally posted by deeprivergal
...I Believe it or not they have come up with easier, faster ways of making meth these days. Much more useful for their supply and demand

Across the nation, farmers are having a hard time securing the Ammo Nitrate, which is a commonly used fertilizer. And yea, it can be used to manufacture bombs, and meth. Deeprivergal- I too know the area, and lived in Winston- Salem for a while. I do believe that this is the easy and cheap method for making meth that you are referring to. I would like to provide links, but personally I am leery of googling on either word, given the nature of ther subject. But theft of Ammo Nitrate for manufacturing of meth is happening across the nation, especially in the Mid West. The easier methods you mention probaly involve using non prescription products available over the counter. They cook Sudafed down, and use the psuedo ephedrine for the effect desired. My state used to not have any problems with meth, until recently. And now they are cooking the crap everywhere. Many stores here will not even sell Sudafed anymore, because of this.

Originally posted by MOC
They just showed last week on the nightly news CBS,
were they had camera's set up at night at different farms.And catching people stealing the Ammonium Nitrate on
camera(to make Meth with) and most of the people they
showed were so wacked out,they would get it in there eye's
and be stumbling around blinded ,cause they didn't no the proper way to get it out of the tanks.

Actually, I think you are a bit confused. The videos that I have seen (I have not seen any TV programs on this, only local D.A. videos) was on people trying to steal ANHYDROUS AMMONIA...which is NOT ammonium nitrate.

Now, I have no idea if you can take ammonium nitrate and produce something equivalent to anydrous ammonia that can be used in meth production, but the point here is that when they still out of TANKS, it's not ammonium nitrate, but anhydrous ammonia.

For the record, after a little hesitant searching, from the State of Mississippi.
Quote from site follows-

"Some of the common chemicals used in meth production include lithium metal, extracted from batteries; acetone or ether, commonly used in engine starting fluid; over-the-counter ephedrine or pseudoephedrine cold tablets; common household lye; anhydrous ammonia, an ammonia nitrate fertilizer; and dry ice."

Source

And one more reference- Quote follows.

"Common fertilizers can also be used to manufacture illegal drugs, namely methamphetamine. The most commonly used fertilizer in the drug manufacturing process is anhydrous ammonia, but a drug manufacturer who's a particularly good chemist can also use urea, ammonium nitrate, liquid UAN solutions and other sources of nitrogen..."

Another logical guess, is that the Anhydrous Ammonia is being so controlled and regulated that the chemists are using the Ammonium Nitrate. Maybe they can get it easier, I dunno. It does appear that may be the case.

Source

Why is this in "War on Terrorism"? - you guys are weired.

anhydrous ammonia, better all look at that one.........

Originally posted by shoo
Why is this in "War on Terrorism"?

- you guys are weired.

Because fertilizer can be used with diesel fuel to make bombs. That's what Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols used to blow up the Murrah Federal Building.