A former Michigan State University student reportedly used the school’s research labs to cook methamphetamine in a stunt that bears some similarity to the premise of the cult classic “Breaking Bad.”
The former student, 31-year-old Xin Tong, began visiting Wells Hall on April 10, continuing up to the day he was caught on April 26, according to the Lansing State Journal. Wells Hall is an MSU building known for its specialized research labs.
Around 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, April 16, MSU police discovered Tong at Wells Hall while responding to a call about a suspicious person, odor, and substances. The police identified him through an expired MSU identification card they found on him.
He was reportedly also carrying multiple bags. A subsequent search led to the discovery of a treasure trove of meth-making ingredients, including sodium hydroxide pellets, hydrochloric acid, methanol, isopropyl alcohol, acetone, and butane.
He was charged with misdemeanor trespassing, in addition to felony charges related to the operation and maintenance of a meth lab.
Court documents reviewed by the Lansing State Journal mentioned damages initially estimated at $20,000, but MSU Police Chief Mike Yankowski said during a news conference Wednesday that the damages are a “significant amount more than $20,000.”
Tong’s presence at Wells Hall first began drawing the school’s attention around April 23, the day school officials called the authorities to report the discovery of property damage, in addition to unknown substances that had been spewed onto the floors and doors.
Following Tong’s arrest, the school shut Wells Hall down initially for just a day, April 27, which was the start of the final exams week, but soon extended the shutdown for the remainder of the week.
“All of this was occurring early on Monday morning, and because of the presence of those unknown substances, the MSU Police Department made the decision to evacuate Wells Hall so we could have a better understanding of what these substances are,” Yankowski said.
As of Sunday, May 3, Tong remained incarcerated at the Ingham County Jail on a $500,000 cash bond. He reportedly faces 20 years in prison if convicted.
His jail record showed that the Department of Homeland Security had placed a hold on him for reasons that remain unknown.
“The damage to the building is directly related to alleged criminal activity,” MSU Deputy Police Chief Chris Rozman said in a statement late Wednesday. “Due to the fact that this is an open and active investigation, we are limited in the information we can share.”
Students were in “complete shock.”
“It’s terrifying to think that there was something like this just going on like underneath our feet, and I wonder how long it’s been going on,” one MSU student told Michigan station WILX.
“That’s why I’m kind of scared — because I don’t know how long this went undetected for,” another student added. “I can’t even think about how many students would have been put in danger because of something like that.”
Like Walter White’s tale in “Breaking Bad,” it appears Tong’s tale is that of a desperate man turning to illegal chemistry in an institutional setting, blending mundane but illegal access with high-stakes criminal enterprise. The real-world twist: it disrupts students’ finals instead of a family empire.
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