Riverside County sheriff’s deputies uncovered what they believe was a chemical drug lab inside a Moreno Valley hotel room Wednesday, a discovery that sent three ambulances to the scene and raised concerns that deputies who inspected the room may have been exposed to toxic substances. At least one person was arrested without incident and taken to a hospital for evaluation, though officials had not immediately released the suspect’s name.
The probable PCP manufacturing lab was found at the WoodSpring Suites hotel at 24455 Hemlock Ave., according to MyNewsLA.com. The hotel sits near Indian Street, less than a quarter-mile north of the Moreno Valley (60) Freeway. Reports from the scene placed the discovery shortly after 4 p.m. Wednesday, when deputies realized the room had allegedly been converted into an illegal drug-manufacturing setup.
Deputies Monitored for Exposure
County fire officials confirmed that three ambulances were dispatched to the hotel after the lab was found, with one ambulance remaining staged in the parking lot as a precaution, the outlet’s report notes. Patrol personnel were evaluated for possible exposure and, as of 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, showed no signs of illness. None of the patrol personnel on scene required further medical attention, per the same account.
The suspect arrested in connection with the lab was not so fortunate in terms of precaution — the individual was taken to Riverside University Medical Center for further evaluation, officials said. It remains unclear whether the hotel was evacuated during the response, and officials gave no immediate information about how the lab was initially discovered. There were also no reported road closures in the area, the article notes.
A Second Moreno Valley Drug-Lab Scare in Two Years
Wednesday’s incident echoes a 2025 case in the same city, when a possible butane honey-oil lab caused an explosion at a Moreno Valley home, critically injuring two people and leading to one arrest, according to CBS News. That blast happened just before 10:30 a.m. in the 13000 block of Pattilynn Drive, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said at the time. Firefighters explained that honey oil, also called hash oil, can be extracted from marijuana leaves using butane — a volatile process that has triggered explosions elsewhere in the region.
Clandestine labs pose risks well beyond the property where they are set up. For every pound of methamphetamine synthesized, six or more pounds of hazardous materials or chemicals may be produced, often left on-site or illegally dumped nearby, according to the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment at oehha.ca.gov. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration separately tracks locations nationwide where law enforcement agencies have reported finding chemicals or other evidence of clandestine drug laboratories or dumpsites, per dea.gov.
Hotels Increasingly Used as Makeshift Labs
Hotel rooms have become a recurring setting for these operations. In a 2025 federal case, prosecutors accused a man named Pedro Marte of turning his hotel room into a clandestine drug lab, with a Drug Enforcement Administration official saying the setup placed innocent guests in danger, according to the Department of Justice at justice.gov. State hazardous-waste officials note that cleanup crews responding to these environments, such as contractors with the Department of Toxic Substances Control, are not first responders, meaning law enforcement and fire personnel are typically first to face the chemical risks on scene, per dtsc.ca.gov.
No further details about the Wednesday arrest, including charges or the suspect’s identity, had been released as of the latest report. The investigation into how the Moreno Valley lab was set up, and how deputies first found it, remains open.
