SOUTH THOMASTON — A South Thomaston man has been arrested this afternoon on a charge of class B trafficking in drugs after law enforcement officers executed a search warrant on his residence late Tuesday morning and seized drug manufacturing equipment.

Paul Mahonen, 36, was home at the time agents and a team chemist with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency showed up at his residence on St. George Road (Route 131). Mahonen was charged with trafficking in methamphetamine and taken to Knox County jail, with bail set at $5,000.

MDEA Supervisor Jim Pease, at the scene earlier today, said that methamphetamine is not currently a big problem in the Midcoast.

"Bath salts are our biggest problem, not meth," said Pease.

Mahonen's residence is where 53-year-old Leonard Wells of Greenbush was arrested Feb. 20 and charged with possession of synthetic hallucinogenic drugs (bath salts). Penobscot County had outstanding warrants for Wells on charges of burglary and violation of conditions of release stemming from another set of drug charges. Last week, Pease said 20 grams of bath salts was seized from Wells and he was taken to jail on the warrants.

MDEA agents, State Police troopers and Knox County Sheriff's deputies arrested Wells last week after they discovered him hiding inside the house while conducting a routine probation check of someone other than Mahonen.

Today, agents closed Route 131 to traffic for a period of time while they secured the premises, situated close to the road. Eventually, traffic was open to one lane and agents, wearing protective gear and working until around 2:30 p.m., processed the scene of the suspected meth lab.

MDEA Commander Darrell Crandall said in a press release that seized evidence included chemicals, plastic bottles and other materials believed to be used to make methamphetamine, a powerfully addictive stimulant that can be easily produced in illicit, makeshift laboratories.

This is the third meth lab that the MDEA has investigated this year, with the other two in Houlton and Smyrna. Last year the MDEA investigated 13 meth labs in the state, with each response costing several thousands of dollars due to the caution and care needed to safely secure the scene and process it for evidence.

Because of the chemicals used to create methamphetamine, air quality is an issue for anyone in and around a site, and there can be a danger of chemical spills, fires and explosions.

Department of Public Safety spokesman Steve McCausland said that most of the labs discovered last year were small-time operators cooking the drug for their own use.

McCausland also offered that Wells, the man arrested last week at Mahonen's house, had been out on bail from a January arrest in one of the largest bath salts cases in Maine. During that arrest, eight pounds of the drug were seized and three others were charged in the case that also led to the seizure of another 10 pounds of bath salts in Texas.

Assisting MDEA agents at the scene today were members of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, South Thomaston Fire and EMS, State Police and the Knox County Sheriff's Office. Police said the investigation will continue and additional arrests are possible.

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• MDEA in South Thomaston for suspected meth lab