The Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department has completed a week-long, county-wide marijuana cultivation bust that resulted in the arrest or citation of 83 people, shutdown of more than 60 illegal grows and seizure of product worth nearly $100 million.
The joint-agency marijuana eradication effort ran Monday, May 31, to Friday, June 4, and “spanned all corners of the county,” according to Stanislaus Sgts. Luke Schwartz and Erich Layton. Led largely by the department’s Community Resource Unit, the enforcement was the result of a months-long investigation into illegal indoor and outdoor cannabis grows in the county.
Schwartz and Layton said illegal marijuana grows are one of the chief complaints that the sheriff’s department receives from the community, and the bust is the result of various tips and other investigations.
According to the sheriff’s release, the campaign targeted 64 grow locations and resulted in the eradication of 74,088 marijuana plants and 1,687 pounds of fully processed plants. Officials also seized 46 firearms and $172,347 in cash. The estimated street value of the illegal cannabis was nearly $100 million.
Authorities said 83 people were arrested, booked or issued citations for various violations. In addition, 26 of the locations had their power shut-off by local utility companies, 16 code enforcement referrals were made, and 13 warrants resulted in Child or Adult Protective Services referrals for what the press release called “unsafe living conditions wherein guardians were arrested for endangering their kids.”
https://www.modbee.com/news/local/crime/article251915068.html
