Crime & Safety
Suspected Malibu Meth Op Was Really Lab to Extract Oil from Cannabis
Investigators discovered more than 700 butane canisters inside the residence.
An operation to extract oil from cannabis in a Malibu residence caused an explosion when static electricity ignited after a light switch was turned on, authorities said today.
A 25-year-old man was transported to a hospital for treatment of burns, and faces narcotics-related charges, while the residence was extensively damaged as a result of the explosion, which occurred around 6 p.m. Tuesday, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Kim Manat said.
The drug lab, inside a residence in the 1200 block of Encinal Canyon Road, was set up to manufacture concentrated cannabis through the extraction of hash oil from marijuana plants, Manat said. Investigators discovered more than 700 butane canisters inside the residence.
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Manat said the lab was one of three discovered in Los Angeles over a 12- hour period Tuesday. The others were in Huntington Park and Glendale.
--City News Service
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