For as long as there have been motels, two of the banes of motels have been drunks and druggies. This story, however, is a bit different as, though it surrounds an explosion in a meth lab at the motel, the "Druggie" in question turned out to be the son of the motel owner.
Man charged for meth lab explosion
at Bozeman motel
By Whitney Bermes Chronicle Staff Writer | Oct 20, 2015
A man has been charged in connection with a meth lab explosion at a Bozeman motel in June.
On Monday, the Gallatin County Attorney’s Office filed a felony charge of operation of an unlawful clandestine lab against Matthew Robert Bendz. An initial court appearance has not been scheduled. Bendz is not currently in custody.
According to charging documents:
On June 24, at about 7:45 p.m., an explosion was reported at the
Royal 7 Motel, 310 N. Seventh Ave. A woman told dispatch that a man at the scene was bleeding and needed an ambulance.
When Bozeman police arrived at the hotel, an officer saw a man get out of an SUV. The man, identified as Bendz, had significant injuries to his arms, face and eyes.
Medical personnel who were evaluating Bendz pulled down his collar where they saw a large cut near his collar bone that was bleeding profusely. A Bozeman officer said the injuries looked like some type of chemical burns from methamphetamine production.
Bendz refused medical attention, saying he had his own ride to the hospital. He later left the area with another man.
The woman who reported the explosion told investigators that Bendz had come into the main office of the motel and said he needed an ambulance.
Bendz lived in an apartment below the motel’s office, where officers saw blood. The motel’s owner, Bendz’s father, allowed investigators to look inside the apartment, where Bendz’s father said Bendz stayed periodically.
Inside the apartment, Bozeman fire officials found supplies typically used in meth production as well as a number of blood-soaked towels.
Investigators from the Missouri River Drug Task Force were called to help investigate. They determined that a “one-pot” meth lab had resulted in the explosion. They found items in the apartment such as lithium batteries, lithium strips, removed battery casings, pseudoephedrine blister packs and cartons, drain cleaner, rock salt, aluminum foil, ammonia, lighter fluid containers, pieces of an exploded glass jar and more.
Bendz was later transported to Salt Lake City for further treatment for the injuries he suffered in the explosion, including a large number of glass jar pieces impaled into his body and a serious chemical burn to his face.
From the Bozeman Daily Chronicle