By Jenny Arnold
Anderson Independent-Mail
LANDRUM, S.C. — Nestled among green cornfields, with peaks of the Blue Ridge mountains in the distance, is a dusty, gravel road that winds its way into the woods in Landrum.
Off Plantation Drive, flanked by several old barns and sheds with rusted roofs, was hiding a secret to some residents of the area until Thursday - a moonshine distillery.
The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office arrested one man and two others face charges in connection with the liquor operation, the result of a 10-month, undercover investigation, Sheriff Chuck Wright said.
Liquor seized
At a news conference in the wooded area near the entrance of the still, Wright said Michael Eston Blackwell, 44, of 6085 New Cut Road, Inman, has been charged with 13 counts of sale/manufacture/storage of unlawful liquor and sale of a distillery.
Larry Hyder, 53, of 321 Plantation Drive, Landrum, and Carroll Campbell, 72, of 305 S. Randolph St., Landrum, have arranged to turn themselves into the sheriff’s office next week and will be charged with sale/manufacture/storage of unlawful liquor, according to Master Deputy Craig Bradley.
Those convicted of a first offense, a misdemeanor, face a fine not less than $600 or six months in prison.
All three men have been cooperative with law enforcement, Wright said. Hyder and Campbell remained in custody on Thursday night, while Blackwell was released from jail about 6:30 p.m. on a $14,000 bond.
Investigators have seized $150,000, four vehicles and 1,500 to 2,000 gallons of white liquor made from fermented corn, better known as moonshine.
At the still, 24 plastic 55-gallon drums sat with corn fermenting in them - the “mash” used to make moonshine. Through a series of pipes and metal drums in the woods, the mash is distilled, with the finished product being collected in another bucket.
Nearby were two mason jars, one marked 7-21-09 and another 8-5-08, containing aged moonshine flavored with the halved peaches inside. Wright said he wasn’t sure whether there were peaches grown on the property, which belongs to Hyder, but he estimated there were about 90 acres of corn being grown there.
“I’m sure it wasn’t just to sell at the produce stand,” Wright said.
The investigation started after narcotics officers received complaints about moonshine being sold at a roadside stand. Blackwell owns a peach stand, and investigators believe through word of mouth it was known that the homegrown liquor was available in the area, Wright said.
The manufacture of moonshine isn’t unheard of in northern Spartanburg County. Wright said it’s likely that the liquor has been made on the property for at least 60 years.
“This is a pretty large operation,” Wright said. “I’m not the first person to bust a still here.”
The sheriff’s office was assisted in the investigation by State Law Enforcement Division agents. Moonshine is often known to be extremely strong. Producing liquor or beer for personal use is not illegal, but running a commercial-sized distillery such as the one found on Plantation Drive is.
“Most men can’t drink two glasses of this stuff without wallerin’ around in the dirt,” Wright said. “If you drank all that yourself, you’d be pickled.”
A lot of the liquor likely was trucked out of the Landrum farm and shipped to the mountains, Wright said.
Officers planned to dismantle the still soon and dispose of the potent liquor.
“I won’t tell you where we’re doing that,” Wright said. “We don’t need any help.”
A neighbor to the property who did not want to give her name said she knew something was going on when she saw a caravan of police cars, and later, TV news satellite trucks and SUVs, head down Plantation Road on Thursday. A helicopter hovered over the area for some time during the morning.
The woman, who has lived in the area for eight years, said she thought moonshine production in the area stopped when a man who made it during the Great Depression died many years ago.
“I never would have thought that was happening here,” she said.
The area is usually peaceful, she said.
“Up until now,” she added, with a laugh.
Copyright 2011 Independent Publishing Company