Officers stumble on motel P lab

Vijay Govind and Hollie Motley were charged with manufacturing methamphetamine this week. Photo / Greg Bowker

A couple have been caught allegedly making methamphetamine in a motel in an upmarket Auckland suburb.

Police have laid eight charges each against Vijay Jeetendar Govind, 37, and Hollie Sarah Motley, 30, after officers looking for Motley stumbled across a mobile P lab at the motel in Parnell on Tuesday.

The pair were charged with manufacturing methamphetamine, possessing equipment and material to manufacture and consume the drug, as well as possessing cannabis and the drug GBL, a synthesised version of liquid Ecstasy.

Auckland City Police Detective Senior Sergeant Nina Pederson said police had visited the motel room on an unrelated matter.

Mrs Pederson said it was unfair to name the motel in question, as it would have unjust commercial impacts on its business and it was not being investigated by police.

However, she said it was not uncommon for clandestine labs to be found in motels, hotels or other commercial premises without the owners' knowledge.

"It's not uncommon at all to be found in a commercial premises; people book in for a few days and are off again. We either hear about them and execute a search warrant or just stumble across them like in this case."

It was also a reminder that drug crime happened in all communities.

"Lots of people think upper market parts of Auckland are immune to that, but they are not. It can happen anywhere at any time."

Govind and Motley are due to appear in court next month.