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Federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents seized 8 pounds of methamphetamine with a street value of about $500,000 at Honolulu Airport on Tuesday. Airport bust nets
$500,000 in drugsBy Harold Morse
Star-BulletinAnd yesterday, police checked out a possible drug lab in Moiliili.
Authorities weren't available to say whether the two events were related.
The methamphetamine was found in luggage carried by Christopher Kegler, also known as Christopher Thomas, according to an affidavit filed yesterday in federal court.
His luggage was detained and a federal search warrant was secured, the affidavit said. A search of the luggage turned up about 8 pounds of a crystalline substance that tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine, the affidavit said.
A criminal complaint accuses Kegler of possessing the substance with intent to distribute.
Estimates of street value range from $48,000 to $72,000 a pound. The total street value thus could range from $384,000 to $576,000.
About 3 p.m. yesterday, police officers requested a Fire Department hazardous materials team to stand by while they checked out a small house at 756 University Ave., where the FBIarrested a 54-year-old man.
One lane in each direction of University Avenue was closed between Date and King streets until 6:28 p.m., when the hazardous materials team returned to quarters.
"Police had busted what they think is a drug lab," a firefighter said.
The small house was cleared, and the HazMat team checked the immediate environment for any hazardous substances present.