Good News For Allergy Sufferers, Bad News For Meth Makers

The new decongestant Zephrex-D should be in St. Louis pharmacies this year. It's gaining support from drug task force agents because it can't be converted into meth. Here's how it works.

A new decongestant set to hit St. Louis area pharmacies in November is gaining support from drug agents in the fight against methamphetamine.  (Read Previous Story: Zephrex-D: Meth-Busting Decongestant in St. Louis Pharmacies This Year) As previously reportedly by Patch, authorities say meth makers purchase popular allergy medications and extract the pseudoephedrine from them.  "You can take a pseudoephedrine pill and the first thing you do is try and extract as much pure pseudoephedrine as possible and step two, you convert that pure pseudoephedrine into methamphetamine," Paul Hemings, with Highland Pharmaceuticals, tells Patch.  In November, Highland Pharmaceuticials is unveiling a new decongestant, Zephrex-D, that Hemings said prevents …

• Photos (1)

Zephrex-D: Meth-Busting Decongestant in St. Louis Pharmacies This Year

Highland Pharmaceuticals plans to offer Zephrex-D in St. Louis pharmacies by November. The new decongestant reportedly cannot be converted into meth and might not require a prescription.

In an effort to fight methamphetamine, Missouri cities and counties, although not St. Louis County, are passing ordinances requiring prescriptions to purchase pseudoephedrine products like Claritin-D and Allegra-D. (Sign up here for the FREE Patch Newsletter, including Breaking News Alerts.) Pseudoephedrine is the key meth making ingredient needed to make the drug. It is extracted from popular allergy medications and converted into meth.  Now, a new decongestant set for sale in St. Louis area pharmacies in November is touted as meth-resistant and gaining support by area drug agents.  Zephrex-D, manufactured by Maryland Heights based Highland Pharmaceuticals, is a new pseudoephedrine product that police and the drug's maker hope will stop …

• Photos (1)

Hazelwood Man Charged with Making Meth in St. Charles

Man's mother, sister also charged with manufacturing the illegal drug and child endangerment.

A Hazelwood man, his mother and sister were charged Thursday in St. Charles County Circuit Court with manufacturing and possessing methamphetamine and endangering a child. Jonathan Trendley, 29, of the 700 block of Hazelvalley Drive in Hazelwood, Kathryn Roloff, 52, and Kaylyn Clark, 17, both of the 2600 block of Falcons Way in St. Charles, were all charged with making and possessing meth and endangering a child. St. Charles County Sheriff’s detectives followed Trendley Wednesday to a St. Charles address where he traded $50 and one-fourth of a gram of meth for two boxes of pseudoephedrine pills, according to a sheriff’s department report. The detectives recovered the cash and meth from the address and pulled over Trendley at the QuikTrip …

•  4 Comments
• Photos (3)

Police Blotter

Hazelwood Resident's Social Security Number Taken and Used to File Income Taxes

Identity theft is on the rise during tax season. In a separate incident, another individual's information was falsely used to file a quick deed claim on an apartment

Here are a few of the crimes that have occurred in the City of Hazelwood throughout the past two weeks. Hazelwood Patch attained the accounts from the Hazelwood Police Department. Flourishing: A man was arrested in the 200 block of Manning Ave., after he waved a handgun at another individual in a threatening manner. Second Degree Assault: Police are investigating a case where a man assaulted a pregnant woman in the 8300 block of Buddie Dr. The woman was beaten with a stick and was transported to DePaul Hospital for treatment to non-life threatening injuries. Property Damage: The passenger window of a vehicle was broken out in the 300 block of Chapel Ridge Dr. Failure to Comply/Possession of a Controlled Substance-Paraphernalia/Unlawful Use…

• Photos (1)