Police seize $23K in meth during bust

Early Tuesday morning a man was arrested and charged with possession of what police say was $23,000 worth of methamphetamine.

The suspect, Ryan M. Toto, was charged with possession of dangerous drugs for sale, possession of equipment for dangerous drugs, and transport of dangerous drugs for sale.

According to police documents, at around 2 a.m. Toto pulled his black Chevrolet Silverado out of the Circle K located on the corner of John Wayne Parkway and Bowlin Road, onto John Wayne Parkway and made an improper turn by turning into the number two lane instead of the number three lane.

The vehicle had a collection of infractions that also caught the attention of police: It did not have a license plate light; the passenger side tail light had a bright white light reflecting from it; the driver side headlight was out and there was also a large piece of wood and a motor scooter about to fall out of the bed of the truck, police said.

When police pulled over the vehicle, the driver identified himself as Ryan M. Toto with his Arizona driver’s license.

Once a record check was done, the license came back as expired.

Police say that when asked to step out of the vehicle, Toto complied.

As Toto exited the vehicle, police observed several bottles of rubbing alcohol, mouth wash, gasoline, toothpaste, a chemical mask inside the Silverado.

Police also saw a dismantled lithium battery on the driver side floorboard.

According to police, these are all items that can be used to make methamphetamine.

Officers also saw a green container with a powdery substance in the center console.

Police called for a K9 to search the vehicle and at 2:51 a.m. a Chandler police dog arrived at the scene.

The dog alerted on the vehicle while at the driver side door.

Officers found a clear white container filled to the top with methamphetamine on the passenger seat, a small plastic tube with meth was also found in the driver’s side door frame, in addition to the green container identified as meth found in the center console.

Three additional chemical masks and a hazmat suit were found in vehicle, along with several more lithium batteries.

When police brought the substances to the police station to test and weight them, they tested positive for methamphetamine and had a combined weight of 54.8 grams.

The seized meth was worth thousands, “An approximate street value of $23,000” police said.