Arrests made in campsite meth case

Police shut down a “shake-and-bake” meth lab at a campsite near South Holston Lake late Thursday afternoon. They arrested two people, including a Chilhowie woman, on drug charges and letting a 16-month-old baby be present during the potentially explosive drug-making process.
According to Washington County Sheriff Fred Newman, an investigation into a suspected meth lab led to the arrests.
A Washington County Sheriff’s Office press release said Joe Howard Widener III, 32, of Jockey Bend Road, Glade Spring, was arrested without incident at the campsite. He was charged with manufacturing a Schedule I or II controlled substance and allowing a child to be present during the manufacture or attempted manufacture of methamphetamine.
The release noted that Widener was also charged on an outstanding warrant of grand larceny involving the theft of a trailer. Additional charges are pending.
Widener was being held in the Abingdon facility of the Southwest Virginia Regional Jail under a $4,500 secured bond.
The sheriff’s office release said that Nichole Marie Osborne, 24, of Mill Creek Road, Chilhowie, was also arrested without incident at the campsite. The release reported that she was charged with manufacturing a Schedule I or II controlled substance and allowing a child to be present during the manufacture or attempted manufacture of methamphetamine.
She was being held in the regional jail under a $3,500 bond.
“Shake-and-bake” meth labs are becoming increasingly popular. The formula allows individuals to use a plastic soft drink bottle, a small quantity of cold pills and assorted other chemicals to make the powerful stimulant. By shaking the bottle, drug producers create an volatile reaction that yields the highly addictive drug.
In contrast to the more complicated labs, this process is said to be quicker, even being performed in a vehicle, and cheaper, producing smaller quantities.
Agencies involved in the investigation and subsequent cleanup of the meth lab included the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Abingdon Police Department and the Virginia State Police.