PELHAM, N.H. (AP) – A 24-year-old Pelham man who shot at police last month, and jumped out a second-story window, had been using crystal methamphetamine, police said.

Joshua Caprarella later told police he had used crystal meth for two years, although he said he hadn’t used any in a week. He said he thought he was shooting at a masked man holding a rifle with a silencer, police said.

Police in New England are bracing for an increase in crimes related to the drug.

While meth has been a major law enforcement headache in the Southwest and Midwest for years, it has only recently begun showing up on the street in New England.

Meth is highly addictive and can cause mental illness and physical deterioration very quickly. About a dozen small meth labs have been discovered in the state over the past 18 months.

But efforts to control the drug are starting to take hold. State legislators are considering passing a law to control sales of over-the-counter cold medicines used to make it. Some Midwestern states have passed such laws and several national pharmacy chains have agreed to keep cold medicines behind the counter or ban large sales.

AP-ES-10-10-05 1353EDT