Already facing charges for helping to operate a methamphetamine lab that exploded in Lansford last year, Jacqueline Slaven allegedly set up shop again - this time at an apartment she rented in Tamaqua.
Tamaqua police raided that drug-making operation at 29 E. Elm St. on Friday and charged Slaven, 38, with manufacturing and selling the illegal drug.
Slaven faces additional drug-related and child endangerment charges and was committed to Schuylkill County Prison following an arraignment before Magisterial District Judge Stephen J. Bayer, Tamaqua. She was unable to post $50,000 bail.
Tamaqua police executed a search warrant at Apartment 2 about 9 a.m. with assistance from Rush Township police and members of the state police Clandestine Lab Response Team from Bethlehem.
According to police, Bayer issued the warrant based on tips from citizens and police investigations over the past several months.
Others found inside the home were charged with what police called "various drug law crimes." Their names, or the charges they face, weren't immediately available.
Slaven was charged with manufacture of methamphetamine, manufacture with intent to deliver methamphetamine and possession of a controlled substance. She also was charged with possession of heroin, possession of heroin with intent to sell, possession of drug paraphernalia and recklessly endangering the welfare of a child.
A portion of East Elm Street was closed to traffic as officers removed evidence from the row-home apartment. State police set up two tables, one for evidence and another for officers to log confiscated items into a computer.
As they catalogued the items - such as receipts from a chain drugstore and various lengths of tubing - officers sealed them in clear plastic bags. Police said they also seized money and drugs.
Curious neighbors watched from windows and a nearby sidewalk.
One Tamaqua resident, who didn't reveal his name, said children lived in the apartment. He also recalled seeing many visitors to the property and said he wasn't surprised by the raid.
Another resident said she didn't notice anything out of the ordinary.
"I couldn't believe it when I heard it - a meth lab?" she said.
Slaven's preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 7 before Bayer.
In May, Lansford police charged Slaven after a methamphetamine lab she and others operated at her 117 E. Patterson St. home exploded and caught fire. She was charged with conspiracy to operate a methamphetamine lab, operating a methamphetamine lab, risking a catastrophe, possession of red phosphorous with intent to manufacture a controlled substance, recklessly endangering another person and endangering the welfare of children.