HALIFAX — Chemical thefts related to the illegal methamphetamine trade resulted in two arrests this week in Halifax County. Another arrest is pending, bringing the total number of similar busts in less than a month to eight.

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The arrests by the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office were the result of intense surveillance, both on-site and remotely with deputies watching surveillance film on their home computers, Maj. Bruce Temple said yesterday.

The suspects are believed to be taking the chemical to use in producing the drugs in locations outside Halifax County. No illegal labs have been found in the county.

The latest arrests are not related to others in the county, Temple said.

In the first arrest this week, Deputy Dreher Bozard and Lt. George Evans stopped a suspicious car near Halifax Fertilizer Company in Enfield.

Further investigation by Detective Tyree Davis allegedly showed Stuart Bernice Rivenbark, 48, and Raymond Michael Starke, 36, both of Duplin County, were stealing anhydrous ammonia from the company’s tanks — a substance commonly used in making methamphetamine.

Rivenbark is in jail in Duplin County pending transport to the Halifax County jail. Starke has not been arrested. They face charges of possession with intent to distribute meth precursor, second-degree trespassing and larceny. No court date has been set.

In the second arrest, deputies investigated a theft of anhydrous ammonia caught on live video.

Deputies seized the vehicle the suspect used during the alleged theft, although Mikel Landis Turner eluded capture initially.

Further investigation led to the 29-year-old Wayne County man’s arrest on charges of possession of meth precursor, second-degree trespassing and larceny. He is being held in Wayne County pending a first appearance in Halifax County.

Temple said the arrests are part of a recent influx of anhydrous ammonia thefts. “The sheriff’s office has responded by increasing patrols, providing surveillance, coordinating a plan of action in response to sightings of trespassers and utilizing the company security equipment which enables us to watch the property in live mode from any computer,” he said. “On several occasions, deputies had the program set up at home in order to catch offenders in action.”

Deputies have made several arrests and anticipate more charges on separate thefts, while pending DNA testing is being done by the SBI (State Bureau of Investigation) lab. ”People who continue to steal this product will be caught,” Temple said.

The Wayne and Duplin County Sheriff offices, as well as the SBI hazmat team, have assisted in the investigations.