Wooster man who made meth in park gets prison
WOOSTER -- A Wooster man who admitted to hiding chemicals used to make meth in his vehicle, and then making meth at a park, was sentenced Wednesday to six years in prison.
Marion Eugene Cecil, 48, with various Wooster and Orrville addresses, was handed two 36-month sentences in the two cases against him by Wayne Common Pleas Judge Corey Spitler.
He was sentenced on one count of illegal possession or assembly of chemicals used in the making of meth (third-degree felony) and one count of illegal manufacture of drugs (second-degree felony). He also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of pollution of state land or water.
Cecil told the court at the hearing Wednesday, "I'm paying for it now," as he has lost his kids and his job from his actions. "I just want to get better."
He asked Spitler if he would be eligible for judicial release. The judge responded he can apply but he may not be eligible until he has served at least three years.
The charges against Cecil stem from incidents on Feb. 20 and April 18, 2013.
He was first arrested Feb. 20 after a traffic stop revealed he and Dana Holliday, 26, of 311 E. South St., Apt. 203, Wooster, had numerous chemicals to make meth hidden in the trunk of the vehicle.
Holliday pleaded guilty to one count of illegal assembly or possession of chemicals for the manufacture of meth, a third-degree felony. She was sentenced Dec. 11 to three years in prison.
Senior Medway Drug Enforcement Agency agent Don Hall said previously Holliday was operating a station wagon when the two were stopped for a traffic violation by Wooster police while heading southbound on Columbus Avenue. Both were arrested on existing warrants and a K-9 unit sniffed the vehicle and alerted the officer to something inside the vehicle.
Two Coleman-type coolers in the trunk, a hydrogen chloride generator and leftover chemicals used to make meth -- such as muriatic acid, sodium hydroxide, lithium batteries and pseudoephedrine, along with filters and funnels -- were found in the vehicle.
"Both coolers contained items used to make meth ... what was smoking was leftover from a prior cook," Hall said previously, adding it is believed they were heading to another location to cook the drug.
Cecil's other case comes from an April 18 incident when law enforcement tracked him down in Grosjean Park in Wooster.
According to Hall, they had been "keeping tabs" on Cecil, as he was out on bond after being charged in February.
Hall said Cecil had set up some fishing poles to make it look like he was fishing. He wasn't fishing, but he was actively cooking meth using the one-pot method, just a couple feet away from the water, said Hall.
Hall said more than 20 pounds of waste was collected and included various chemicals used to make meth, along with 375 grams of liquid meth. According to federal standards, the amount of product generated would qualify as a "super lab."
Medway agents also recovered chemicals and additional meth-related trash from different areas in the woods in close proximity that were left from prior cooks, said Hall.
According to Hall, one of the one-pot meth bottles ignited and exploded onto a Bureau of Criminal Investigation agent during cleanup. Although he was not injured, the agent's protective suit caught on fire and had to be put out with an extinguisher.
Reporter Steve Huszai can be reached at 330-287-1645 or shuszai@the-daily-record.com. He is @GeneralSmithie on Twitter.