'Breaking Bad' university professor accused of selling crystal meth

A professor in the US has been accused of running his own Breaking Bad style crystal meth operation, as well as badgering women for sex.

65-year-old Sergey Macheret used to teach at the Purdue School of Aeronautics and Astronautics in West Lafayette, Indiana, where things are quite literally rocket science, but he was arrested on 1 February.

His arrest came after a number of complaints were made to police in nearby Lafayette by women who claim to have been approached by Macheret.

The authorities started to investigate him after the women came forward to make their complaints, later identifying him as a suspect after a plain-clothed police officer managed to get some information out of him.

Lafayette Police Department

Then, he was taken into custody in December after a traffic stop, before he was released on bail after paying a bond of $500.

Macheret, who is an expert in plasma science, is expected to be charged with dealing methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine, and making an unlawful proposition.

Those first two expected charges are where the comparison with the AMC show Breaking Bad are drawn from.

In the show, chemistry teacher Walter White (played by Bryan Cranston) teams up with delinquent student Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) to create crystal meth after learning that he has cancer, with the aim of supporting his family and clearing his debts with the money raised through his dodgy dealings.

The show ran from 2008 until 2013.

Purdue University, where Macheret has been teaching since 2014, have since placed him on leave and told him that he is banned from the campus.

They released a statement that said: "The university will cooperate fully with the investigation.

“The employee has been placed on leave pending further updates and legal proceedings and is barred from campus.

"The School of Aeronautics and Astronautics is working to ensure that undergraduate and graduate student needs are met regarding lectures and labs.”

AMC

The head of the Purdue School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Bill Crossley, has also implored any students who might have any information to help the police with their investigations to come forward.

He told local TV: "Any AAE students, staff and faculty who have questions or concerns about this impact of this matter on their academic endeavours [are asked] to contact me directly.”

Purdue is one of the more prestigious schools in the US, counting the first man on the moon Neil Armstrong among their alumni.

Macheret attended the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, earning a master’s degree in physics, and has won numerous awards including the Best Paper in Plasmadynamics and Lasers award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics in 2008.

He has been teaching at Purdue since 2014, but has also taught at a number of other highly-regarded institutions.