Vafaiyan

By Jessica Langdon/Times Record News
April 29, 2004

Investigators have a big job ahead, going through everything they seized from one man's store, house and car this week. All the items needed to make methamphetamine were there - except for the anhydrous ammonia, Wichita Falls police said.

"We're going to do a detailed inventory about the number of pills, batteries," cans of fuel and other items they hauled from the Krystal Mart at 701 N. Eastside Drive, Department of Public Safety narcotics Lt. Allen Navarro said Wednesday.

Officers arrested Reza Vafaiyan, 55, 2900 Kyle Cove, Monday night. He was charged with possession of certain chemicals with intent to manufacture meth. He was also charged with possession of a controlled substance under 1 gram in connection with an incident Jan. 12. Vafaiyan was held in the Wichita County Jail Wednesday on $210,000 bond.

As of Wednesday officers had counted 80,000 pills that contained pseudoephedrine - a meth precursor, police said. Navarro said they also found $128,000 in cash inside the Krystal Mart.

Neighbors watched Tuesday as officers looked around inside the store and piled boxes of evidence outside.

"Finally got him," one said.

Maj. Gerald Todd said the man who runs the store was likely providing one-fourth to half of the supplies used to make meth in this area.

A joint investigation included police, the Department of Public Safety, the Wichita County District Attorney's Office, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the FBI.

"This has been an extensive, ongoing investigation," Navarro said.

He said information started coming in about two years ago, and the different agencies were able to collect their own information.

Officers gathered and documented details during an intense surveillance operation that lasted several days, police said. Surveillance efforts went through at least the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Todd said.

Navarro said the combined efforts paid off, and working together helped agencies "to attack this problem."

"It's rampant right now," Assistant District Attorney Rick Mahler said. "We're trying to fight it any way we can."

He and Assistant D.A. Jerry Taylor work drug cases and took their ideas about potential new legislation to D.A. Barry Macha.

Oklahoma recently passed the Trooper Nik Green Act, which tightly controls sales of cold tablets that have pseudoephedrine. He said the D.A.'s office would like to see something similar in Texas.

He doesn't expect anything during the current special session, and said the end of 2005 is a more likely start date.

"I think everybody in law enforcement is very interested in doing that," he said, especially because meth bleeds over into other crimes, like burglaries, forgeries and thefts.

"It has a ripple effect," Mahler said.

He said local law enforcement agencies have already referred 1,000 cases to the D.A.'s office this year. A few years ago, that amount might have been for an entire year, he said.

Todd said police and other agencies would watch meth activity over the next few weeks. He said a drop wouldn't surprise him after this week's arrest.

Navarro said the investigation isn't over. The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and the state Comptroller's Office were also investigating some alcohol and cigarette issues officers found inside the store.

Crime reporter Jessica Langdon can be reached at (940) 763-7530 or by email at langdonj(at)TimesRecordNews.com.

Copyright 2004, Times Record News. All Rights Reserved.