Employee accused of running meth lab out of a Taco Bell

Police found the remnants of a meth lab inside a fast food restaurant in Cedar Rapids early this morning. The arriving officers found two men outside, including one Taco Bell employee.

Greg Buelow, Public Safety Communications Coordinator, says officers were called at around 4:42 a.m. Tuesday for a suspicious person at the restaurant. Our franchisee has been cooperating with Cedar Rapids Police to investigate this isolated incident.

“The employee has been terminated and our franchisee is considering pressing criminal charges”, the statement said.

The report says that one of the men told police he was an employee at the restaurant, and the other said he was not.

Meador says once the restaurant’s private firm cleans, her department will go in and do their own intensive inspection. Police found some ingredients and equipment for making meth inside a utility closet in the Taco Bell. But it was unclear if meth had actually been cooked in the restaurant.

The men were identified as 31-year-old Christopher Adam Matous and 56-year-old Kent Jerome Duby. Two of the charges are felonies. They were arrested and charged with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine.

At this time, authorities don’t know exactly what was inside the Taco Bell. A sign posted at the restaurant predicted it would reopen Tuesday evening.