Police Discover Meth Lab in Port Richmond

Philadelphia police say they`ve uncovered one of the biggest drug labs ever found in the city, but a man believed to have ties to the lab is missing.

According to Philadelphia Police Captain Len Ditchkofsky: "We went there looking for a missing person. We didn`t think we would find this."

Police were looking for 30-year-old Phillip DeFelice of Cherry Hill, NJ. His auto shop in the 3400 block of North Almond Street in Port Richmond looked relatively inconspicuous – except that it came equipped with a smoke stack to rival those at an oil refinery. And then police detected a strong odor.

As it turned out, the smoke stack was part of what authorities call a sophisticated meth lab being operated in the back of the shop. Suddenly it was not just a missing person case. "Before you knew it, everybody in the world was there," says Captain Ditchkofsky.

What they found next astonished them even more: a large assortment of assault rifles, machine guns and other weapons. From the looks of it, detectives speculate that DeFelice was either preparing for a tangle with a major drug cartel or for World War III. In either case, Phillip DeFelice is nowhere to be found, and the worst is feared.

Police say that the quiet neighborhood at Almond and Shiller is perfect if you`re trying to avoid attention. As neighbor Frank Ryan said Thursday after the lab was discovered, "You`d never know... you`d never see anybody coming or going at night."

"I guess we were all asleep around here," Ed Sparkevicius, another neighbor, said. "I hope he`s still alive."

At DeFelice`s condo at the Cherry Parke, located off Kings Highway in Cherry Hill, neighbors didn`t know much either. John Marnie just moved in next door two weeks ago – now his neighbor`s missing and there`s black fingerprint dusting powder all over the doors.

"It`s kinda scary," Marnie says. "I mean, I feel bad."

"To be honest with you, he`s so quiet I don`t even know what to suspect. I just found out yesterday."

So where is Phillip DeFelice and is he still alive or the victim of foul play? Those are the questions authorities are still trying to answer.

Anyone with information is being asked to call East Detectives at (215) 686-3243, or just call the Philadelphia police.

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Author: 6 ABC - Action News (AP)