2. Wednesday, December 1, 2010 The Cape Fear Herald A2
Authorities shut down major
methamphetamine operation
Five pounds of pure crystal meth
found in the clothing of a one year old
BY SHIRLEY MATTHEWS
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Wilmington —Federal, state
and local law officers shut
down a major methamphet-
amine laboratory yesterday,
arresting husband and wife
drug dealers.
Police seized assault
weapons, $50,000 in cash and
5 pounds of high-quality crys-
tal meth hidden in the clothing
of their one-year-old grand-
daughter.
Law officers also
found chemicals that could
produce about thirty pounds
of methamphetamine, and two
Mustang Cobra convertibles.
The property was equipped
with an alarm system that in-
cluded motion detectors.
Robert Lewis Hill, 63,
and wife Linda Paula Hill, 60,
were arrested at their 11acre
home on 847790 Gillette Drive
after agents from Attorney
General Roy Cooper’s Special
Response Team (SRT) served
a number of search warrants.
The methamphetamine
lab was in full operation, pro-
ducing about twelve pounds of
methamphetamine and spew-
ing dangerous toxic fumes,
when it was seized by law
officers.
When the agents and
officers searched other build-
ings on the property, they dis-
covered a sophisticated indoor
marijuana growing operation
with computer-controlled
moving track lights that were
used to heat the plants.
They also discovered
a lab that was producing key
chemical ingredients used to
manufacture methamphet-
amine.
Neighbors were
shocked. “They were always
such quiet people,” said El-
sie Montavalli, 80, who lives
across the street from the Hills.
“The stink off their property
could have melted your face.
I’ve complained many times,
but I never expected this kind
of response.”
In addition, possible
co-conspirators Jose Salsa-
da, 32, and Chelsea Lea, 40,
were arrested at 988000 Pine
Grove St., at a two-story house
owned by the Hills, where a
small amount of methamphet-
amine, one assault rifle, and a
grenade launcher were seized.
Salsada faces charges of pos-
session for sale of a controlled
substance, and possession of
an assault weapon. Lea faces
charges of possession of drug
paraphernalia.
The Hill’s face charg-
es of manufacturing metham-
phetamine, possession for sale
of a controlled substance and
cultivation of marijuana.
Evidence indicated
that methamphetamine had
been produced many times at
that location; over a period of
several years the amount of
chemicals bought by the Hills
could have produced more
than seven thousand pounds
of methamphetamine worth
$70 million, said police.
A search of Robert
Hill’s business, Cape Fear
WOW Recording Studio on
Market St., failed to reveal any
contraband. The husband and
wife were prolific gamblers
and had accumulated losses of
more than $700,000 in the last
five years.
Their granddaughter is
at the home of a relative. Child
endangerment and weapon
charges may also be pending,
police said.
All suspects are be-
ing held at the New Hanover
County jail. ♦
Protesters
Continued from A1
Horner takes glazing
lessons at Twice Baked Pot-
tery Painting Studio, 6 Market
Street, which costs $120 for
six weeks. The
tickets she has had to pay have
cost her $380.
“This place will be a
ghost town if the politicians
don’t do something about it,”
says Yeager.
Mayor Bill Saffo says
solving the traffic and park-
ing problem is the number one
item on his agenda. “If it’s the
last thing I do, parking will be
free in downtown Wilming-
ton.” ♦
Jackson
Continued from A1
Jackson’s movies have
generated more than $3 billion
in tourism revenue and off-
shoot industries; his work has
also put New Zealand on the
Hollywood A-list for filming.
“I’m delighted to say
that Wilmington has every-
thing I need to film this monu-
mental tribute to the Tolkien
legend, and I will be looking
Hoarder
Continued from A1
Officers, unable to
break down the door because
it was completely blocked by
paper, managed to rip a hole
in the door with a crowbar.
Everyone began digging in
the entombing pile of paper to
find Tremaine.
He was taken to New
Hanover Regional Medical
Center where he was in stable
condition this morning with
leg injuries, said a hospital
spokesman.
Apparently the weight
that fell on him during his cap-
tivity caused fluid to accumu-
late in his legs.
It took more than an
hour to free Tremaine, with
more than a hundred garbage
bags of material hauled out be-
fore he could be reached. ♦
Wrecking ball slips, knocks hole
in wall of historic Thalian Hall
BY DIANA ASHE
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Wilmington —A wrecking
ball leveling a condemned
building downtown swung
wildly in yesterday’s 40 mph
gusts and knocked a hole in
the wall of historic Thalian
Hall, one of Wilmington’s
oldest and most hallowed
landmarks.
“It just slipped away
from me,” said crane operator
Cyrus Z. Xavier. Xavier is an
employee of Blocker Service,
the demolition company hired
to remove a cinder-block din-
er behind the performing arts
center to make way for a park-
ing garage. “That wind almost
blew the whole machine over
and me with it.”
The crane Xavier op-
erates weighs 18 tons and is
more than one hundred feet
high. He is a licensed operator
and has worked for Blocker
for more than 10 years, said
police reports.
The hole is only four
feet in diameter and is in a part
of Thalian Hall that is empty,
said a spokesperson for the
center. “No harm done,” he
said cheerfully. He estimat-
ed the damage to be about
$3,000.
Others were not so
sanguine.“The last thing
anybody needs in this town is
more concrete piled up. It’s
an eyesore, and it’s all at tax-
payer expense,” said George I.
Urope of Princess St.
The demolition is part
of a larger $35 million down-
town improvement plan that
calls for a four-story parking
garage and various other traf-
fic management strategies.
“When was the last
time you tried to park down-
town and actually found a
spot,” inquired Mayor Bill
Saffo. “This and other proj-
ects are making the downtown
[area] a destination spot for
tourists and residents alike.
It’s money well spent.”
The weather yester-
day caught many by surprise.
Weather forecasters were
predicting early in the week
that the skies would be sunny
and cloudless, and the winds
would be balmy off the ocean.
Surprisingly, the
weather took a turn for the
worse two days ago and some
feared that a hurricane form-
ing in the east Atlantic might
create turbulent conditions for
the Cape Fear coast.
The high winds fizzled
400 miles east of the Cape
Fear coast; however, the heavy
damage that was anticipated
never happened.
Police are continuing their
investigation of the wrecking
ball incident.♦
UNCW student mistakenly eats rare fish
BYWILLIAM HUMPHREY
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Wilmington — Triumph
turned to tragedy yesterday
when a UNCW graduate stu-
dent mistakenly ate what he
thought was a piece of sushi,
only to discover that he had
just eaten an unknown species
of fish.
The fish had been laid
out on a display table and was
about to be shown to an inter-
national panel of fish experts
when Byron Hodwallider, 29,
a candidate for a Masters de-
gree in Marine Science, ate the
fish.
The fish was caught a
week ago in deep water off the
coast of North Carolina. It was
thought at first to be a relative
of the lion fish that was first
seen off these shores just re-
cently.
The lion fish is a preda-
tor and was initially thought to
be able to survive only in the
warmer waters of the south.
The newly discovered
fish had a similar orange col-
oration and plentiful “spikes”
like the lion fish, but the new
fish, which had yet to be
named, sported teeth like a pi-
ranha.
It was also discovered
that the new fish had the abil-
ity to “sing” by puffing up a
bladder in its stomach and
pumping out the air in a forced
way so that, to the divers who
heard the noise, it sounded like
a harmonica.
“I actually thought
someone was playing ‘My
Old Kentucky Home’ down
there,” said diver and Marine
Science Center scientist Scott
V. Thomaston.
Thomaston and three
other divers found and netted
the fish about 50 miles off the
coast of North Carolina on a
dive that brought them about
60 feet below the surface of the
water. When told of the eat-
ing mishap, Thomaston broke
down in tears and was unable
to continue the interview.
After discovery, the
singing fish was brought to the
center where it was dissected
and then preserved to show
other scientists and interested
parties.
The fish was brought
out of its preservation area and
put on the display table, which
was covered with white linen.
The fish was displayed on
what looked to be a nice piece
of delft porcelain.
“I thought it was some-
body’s lunch. How was
I to know?” said Hodwallider.
“I took one bite, and it was
pretty good. Some of it had
a funny taste, though. I think
that may have been the form-
aldehyde.”
His teachers reacted
with restraint when they real-
ized what Hodwallider had
done.
“We are reserving
comment at this time on Mr.
Hodwallider’s actions,” said
a spokesperson for the Marine
Center.
The Discovery Chan-
nel has canceled plans to do
a special on the finding of the
fish, and Thomaston’s planned
book on the subject has been
shelved. ♦
for people to star in this up-
coming live-action film,” said
Jackson.
Jackson has said his
casting director will be accept-
ing headshots of people who
are under four feet tall.
“We’re looking for
people with novel abilities,”
Jackson said. ♦
Authorities seized a full-operation meth lab yesterday.
Their search revealed key chemical ingredients used to
manufacture methamphetamine.
Pet kangaroo protects home
from attempted robbery
BYAMANDA IOCCA
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Castle Hayne—Two men
were arrested in Castle Hayne
yesterday after breaking into
a trailer in an attempted rob-
bery.
George X. Chowntin,
18, and Harry G. Inhotep, 19,
of Wilmington were met by
the trailer owner’s pet after
smashing the living room win-
dow of the trailer and climbing
through the opening.
“Wilber is the best
friend I ever had,” said Noigan
T. Ravenal, 82, of 1232898 Di-
vision St. “I took him into my
heart, and he saved my life.”
Wilber is Ravenal’s
pet kangaroo. Ravenal discov-
ered the 4-foot-tall marsupial
in a roadside ditch near his
home, after the internationally
renowned troupe, Cirque du
Soleil came through Wilming-
ton two years ago.
“He was a scared little
thing,” said Ravenal. “I just
wrapped him in my coat and
carried him home.”
Ravenal claims the
young roo was left for dead,
and that the original owner has
never been found.
A spokesperson from
the circus denies that the ani-
mal ever belonged to anyone
under their employment.
According to Ravenal,
Wilber took to action after
Chowntin and Inhotep landed
inside the trailer to protect his
home and owner.
When authorities ar-
rived, the two would-be rob-
bers were lying unconscious
on the floor.
“I’m so proud of my
furry son, I could burst,” said
Ravenal.
The two men are now in
New Hanover County Jail, and
are being charged with break-
ing and entering as well as a
variety of other offenses. ♦
![Wednesday, December 1, 2010 The Cape Fear Herald A2
Authorities shut down major
methamphetamine operation
Five pounds of pure crystal meth
found in the clothing of a one year old
BY SHIRLEY MATTHEWS
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Wilmington —Federal, state
and local law officers shut
down a major methamphet-
amine laboratory yesterday,
arresting husband and wife
drug dealers.
Police seized assault
weapons, $50,000 in cash and
5 pounds of high-quality crys-
tal meth hidden in the clothing
of their one-year-old grand-
daughter.
Law officers also
found chemicals that could
produce about thirty pounds
of methamphetamine, and two
Mustang Cobra convertibles.
The property was equipped
with an alarm system that in-
cluded motion detectors.
Robert Lewis Hill, 63,
and wife Linda Paula Hill, 60,
were arrested at their 11acre
home on 847790 Gillette Drive
after agents from Attorney
General Roy Cooper’s Special
Response Team (SRT) served
a number of search warrants.
The methamphetamine
lab was in full operation, pro-
ducing about twelve pounds of
methamphetamine and spew-
ing dangerous toxic fumes,
when it was seized by law
officers.
When the agents and
officers searched other build-
ings on the property, they dis-
covered a sophisticated indoor
marijuana growing operation
with computer-controlled
moving track lights that were
used to heat the plants.
They also discovered
a lab that was producing key
chemical ingredients used to
manufacture methamphet-
amine.
Neighbors were
shocked. “They were always
such quiet people,” said El-
sie Montavalli, 80, who lives
across the street from the Hills.
“The stink off their property
could have melted your face.
I’ve complained many times,
but I never expected this kind
of response.”
In addition, possible
co-conspirators Jose Salsa-
da, 32, and Chelsea Lea, 40,
were arrested at 988000 Pine
Grove St., at a two-story house
owned by the Hills, where a
small amount of methamphet-
amine, one assault rifle, and a
grenade launcher were seized.
Salsada faces charges of pos-
session for sale of a controlled
substance, and possession of
an assault weapon. Lea faces
charges of possession of drug
paraphernalia.
The Hill’s face charg-
es of manufacturing metham-
phetamine, possession for sale
of a controlled substance and
cultivation of marijuana.
Evidence indicated
that methamphetamine had
been produced many times at
that location; over a period of
several years the amount of
chemicals bought by the Hills
could have produced more
than seven thousand pounds
of methamphetamine worth
$70 million, said police.
A search of Robert
Hill’s business, Cape Fear
WOW Recording Studio on
Market St., failed to reveal any
contraband. The husband and
wife were prolific gamblers
and had accumulated losses of
more than $700,000 in the last
five years.
Their granddaughter is
at the home of a relative. Child
endangerment and weapon
charges may also be pending,
police said.
All suspects are be-
ing held at the New Hanover
County jail. ♦
Protesters
Continued from A1
Horner takes glazing
lessons at Twice Baked Pot-
tery Painting Studio, 6 Market
Street, which costs $120 for
six weeks. The
tickets she has had to pay have
cost her $380.
“This place will be a
ghost town if the politicians
don’t do something about it,”
says Yeager.
Mayor Bill Saffo says
solving the traffic and park-
ing problem is the number one
item on his agenda. “If it’s the
last thing I do, parking will be
free in downtown Wilming-
ton.” ♦
Jackson
Continued from A1
Jackson’s movies have
generated more than $3 billion
in tourism revenue and off-
shoot industries; his work has
also put New Zealand on the
Hollywood A-list for filming.
“I’m delighted to say
that Wilmington has every-
thing I need to film this monu-
mental tribute to the Tolkien
legend, and I will be looking
Hoarder
Continued from A1
Officers, unable to
break down the door because
it was completely blocked by
paper, managed to rip a hole
in the door with a crowbar.
Everyone began digging in
the entombing pile of paper to
find Tremaine.
He was taken to New
Hanover Regional Medical
Center where he was in stable
condition this morning with
leg injuries, said a hospital
spokesman.
Apparently the weight
that fell on him during his cap-
tivity caused fluid to accumu-
late in his legs.
It took more than an
hour to free Tremaine, with
more than a hundred garbage
bags of material hauled out be-
fore he could be reached. ♦
Wrecking ball slips, knocks hole
in wall of historic Thalian Hall
BY DIANA ASHE
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Wilmington —A wrecking
ball leveling a condemned
building downtown swung
wildly in yesterday’s 40 mph
gusts and knocked a hole in
the wall of historic Thalian
Hall, one of Wilmington’s
oldest and most hallowed
landmarks.
“It just slipped away
from me,” said crane operator
Cyrus Z. Xavier. Xavier is an
employee of Blocker Service,
the demolition company hired
to remove a cinder-block din-
er behind the performing arts
center to make way for a park-
ing garage. “That wind almost
blew the whole machine over
and me with it.”
The crane Xavier op-
erates weighs 18 tons and is
more than one hundred feet
high. He is a licensed operator
and has worked for Blocker
for more than 10 years, said
police reports.
The hole is only four
feet in diameter and is in a part
of Thalian Hall that is empty,
said a spokesperson for the
center. “No harm done,” he
said cheerfully. He estimat-
ed the damage to be about
$3,000.
Others were not so
sanguine.“The last thing
anybody needs in this town is
more concrete piled up. It’s
an eyesore, and it’s all at tax-
payer expense,” said George I.
Urope of Princess St.
The demolition is part
of a larger $35 million down-
town improvement plan that
calls for a four-story parking
garage and various other traf-
fic management strategies.
“When was the last
time you tried to park down-
town and actually found a
spot,” inquired Mayor Bill
Saffo. “This and other proj-
ects are making the downtown
[area] a destination spot for
tourists and residents alike.
It’s money well spent.”
The weather yester-
day caught many by surprise.
Weather forecasters were
predicting early in the week
that the skies would be sunny
and cloudless, and the winds
would be balmy off the ocean.
Surprisingly, the
weather took a turn for the
worse two days ago and some
feared that a hurricane form-
ing in the east Atlantic might
create turbulent conditions for
the Cape Fear coast.
The high winds fizzled
400 miles east of the Cape
Fear coast; however, the heavy
damage that was anticipated
never happened.
Police are continuing their
investigation of the wrecking
ball incident.♦
UNCW student mistakenly eats rare fish
BYWILLIAM HUMPHREY
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Wilmington — Triumph
turned to tragedy yesterday
when a UNCW graduate stu-
dent mistakenly ate what he
thought was a piece of sushi,
only to discover that he had
just eaten an unknown species
of fish.
The fish had been laid
out on a display table and was
about to be shown to an inter-
national panel of fish experts
when Byron Hodwallider, 29,
a candidate for a Masters de-
gree in Marine Science, ate the
fish.
The fish was caught a
week ago in deep water off the
coast of North Carolina. It was
thought at first to be a relative
of the lion fish that was first
seen off these shores just re-
cently.
The lion fish is a preda-
tor and was initially thought to
be able to survive only in the
warmer waters of the south.
The newly discovered
fish had a similar orange col-
oration and plentiful “spikes”
like the lion fish, but the new
fish, which had yet to be
named, sported teeth like a pi-
ranha.
It was also discovered
that the new fish had the abil-
ity to “sing” by puffing up a
bladder in its stomach and
pumping out the air in a forced
way so that, to the divers who
heard the noise, it sounded like
a harmonica.
“I actually thought
someone was playing ‘My
Old Kentucky Home’ down
there,” said diver and Marine
Science Center scientist Scott
V. Thomaston.
Thomaston and three
other divers found and netted
the fish about 50 miles off the
coast of North Carolina on a
dive that brought them about
60 feet below the surface of the
water. When told of the eat-
ing mishap, Thomaston broke
down in tears and was unable
to continue the interview.
After discovery, the
singing fish was brought to the
center where it was dissected
and then preserved to show
other scientists and interested
parties.
The fish was brought
out of its preservation area and
put on the display table, which
was covered with white linen.
The fish was displayed on
what looked to be a nice piece
of delft porcelain.
“I thought it was some-
body’s lunch. How was
I to know?” said Hodwallider.
“I took one bite, and it was
pretty good. Some of it had
a funny taste, though. I think
that may have been the form-
aldehyde.”
His teachers reacted
with restraint when they real-
ized what Hodwallider had
done.
“We are reserving
comment at this time on Mr.
Hodwallider’s actions,” said
a spokesperson for the Marine
Center.
The Discovery Chan-
nel has canceled plans to do
a special on the finding of the
fish, and Thomaston’s planned
book on the subject has been
shelved. ♦
for people to star in this up-
coming live-action film,” said
Jackson.
Jackson has said his
casting director will be accept-
ing headshots of people who
are under four feet tall.
“We’re looking for
people with novel abilities,”
Jackson said. ♦
Authorities seized a full-operation meth lab yesterday.
Their search revealed key chemical ingredients used to
manufacture methamphetamine.
Pet kangaroo protects home
from attempted robbery
BYAMANDA IOCCA
CAPE FEAR HERALD
Castle Hayne—Two men
were arrested in Castle Hayne
yesterday after breaking into
a trailer in an attempted rob-
bery.
George X. Chowntin,
18, and Harry G. Inhotep, 19,
of Wilmington were met by
the trailer owner’s pet after
smashing the living room win-
dow of the trailer and climbing
through the opening.
“Wilber is the best
friend I ever had,” said Noigan
T. Ravenal, 82, of 1232898 Di-
vision St. “I took him into my
heart, and he saved my life.”
Wilber is Ravenal’s
pet kangaroo. Ravenal discov-
ered the 4-foot-tall marsupial
in a roadside ditch near his
home, after the internationally
renowned troupe, Cirque du
Soleil came through Wilming-
ton two years ago.
“He was a scared little
thing,” said Ravenal. “I just
wrapped him in my coat and
carried him home.”
Ravenal claims the
young roo was left for dead,
and that the original owner has
never been found.
A spokesperson from
the circus denies that the ani-
mal ever belonged to anyone
under their employment.
According to Ravenal,
Wilber took to action after
Chowntin and Inhotep landed
inside the trailer to protect his
home and owner.
When authorities ar-
rived, the two would-be rob-
bers were lying unconscious
on the floor.
“I’m so proud of my
furry son, I could burst,” said
Ravenal.
The two men are now in
New Hanover County Jail, and
are being charged with break-
ing and entering as well as a
variety of other offenses. ♦](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)