By Mark LaFlamme,Staff Writer

LEWISTON – Methamphetamine could one day replace crack cocaine as the drug of choice in the Lewiston area, drug officials warned Thursday, a day after a suspected meth lab was dismantled and three people arrested.

The two men and one woman charged with dealing meth in the Twin Cities on Wednesday remained jailed Thursday night. Police said Louis Rubino, 25, and Donna Pagnani, 21, have been producing the drug out of their apartment at 624 Sabattus St.

Pagnani’s 3-year-old daughter remained in state custody Thursday after she was examined at a hospital for possible complications from her exposure to the ingredients used in the manufacture of meth. In addition to a charge of drug trafficking, Pagnani has also been charged with endangering the welfare of a child.

Police also found a tank of compressed gas used to manufacture meth at a Goff Street, Auburn, apartment.

Several people were examined Wednesday at hospitals for possible contamination due to their proximity to the homes on Sabattus Street in Lewiston and Goff Street in Auburn. By federal law, children found near a meth manufacturing site are required to be examined.

Meth is more dangerous than other street drugs, according to Maine Drug Enforcement Agency Supervisor Gerry Baril.

The central nervous system stimulant is considered even more addicting than crack, Baril said. For that reason, drug dealers in Maine might be eager to start manufacturing the drug and reap the rewards as more and more people become hooked.

“The high from meth lasts longer than crack and the depression that follows is much more acute,” he said. “The cycle of addiction is quicker.”

Meth users are called “tweakers,” and they are known to experience drastic highs and lows as addiction to the drug takes over. They often suffer paranoia, insomnia, confusion and anxiety, Baril said. Habitual users might show weight loss and rotting teeth as meth flows through the blood and to the heart, muscle and bones.

“Once you start using meth, that becomes your drug of choice,” Baril said. “You use to the point of destroying your health. You don’t use methamphetamine in moderation.”

Before a special team of drug operatives entered the second-floor apartment Wednesday night, there were signs that something illegal was going on inside, police said.

Neighbors said that in recent weeks, there were reports of a flash fire inside the apartment and later, the sound of gunfire from inside the home.

Police said both the fire and the popping sounds were the result of chemical processes involved in the production of meth. They also said the incidents were not brought to the attention of police at the time they occurred.

“At some point, someone needs to have enough courage to pick up the phone and make that call,” Baril said. “If no one wants to do anything about it, nothing is going to get done.”

A team of Baril’s agents Wednesday night recovered a pair of ammonia tanks they say had been stolen from an Auburn company and that they were being used in the production of meth.

One of the tanks was found by Androscoggin County Sheriff’s investigators near a snowmobile trail off Hardscrabble Road in Poland.

The second was found in the 37 Goff St. apartment of 37-year-old Joseph May, police said. May was also charged with aggravated trafficking.

Baril said both ammonia tanks had been stolen from Maine Oxy Acetylene Supply in Auburn. The tanks have since been returned to the company.

Police said they became aware of the drug lab in the Sabattus Street apartment Wednesday afternoon. But it wasn’t until Wednesday night that a team of current and former MDEA agents went inside with special suits to recover equipment and materials from the apartment.

Investigators are particularly concerned about the emergence of meth in Lewiston because manufacturing the drug is dangerous.

“Producing it presents a danger to other people through the chemical processes and through the potential for fire or explosions,” said Lewiston deputy police Chief Michael Bussiere.

In a recent survey, nearly half of all police departments questioned around the country listed meth as the most dangerous drug they deal with. Users of the drug show a higher incident rate of abuse and neglect of children, Bussiere said.

Baril, at the MDEA, said it was only a matter of time before meth began to appear in the Twin Cities. Meth labs have been found in other parts of the state as popularity of the drug spreads from the West Coast and Mid-Western States to the East.

“We’re going to see a lot more of this in Maine,” Baril said.

Bussiere said the investigation into local meth production is ongoing. He said more arrests could be made in coming days as the investigation progresses.

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