(ICSO press release)
Marijuana Cultivation Site Raided West of Independence, CA
September 8, 2014
On Wednesday September 3rd, 2014, INET Agents with the assistance of the Inyo County Sheriff’s Department (ICSO), Bishop Police Department (BPD), United States Forest Service (USFS), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), National Parks Service (NPS), Campaign against Marijuana Planting (CAMP) and the California Highway Patrol (CHP) raided an illegal marijuana cultivation site in the Inyo National Forest west of Independence, CA. Officers removed more than 4,000 marijuana plants with an estimated street value of $2 million dollars. Officer’s also removed approximately 500 pounds of trash and approximately 40 pounds of fertilizer from the site. No suspects were located at the cultivation site during the raid.
The public is asked to please contact local law enforcement if you come across these signs:
- Hoses or drip lines located in unusual or unexpected places.
- A well-used trail where there shouldn’t be one.
- Voices coming from an unusual place.
- People standing along roads without vehicles present, or in areas where loitering appears unusual.
- Camps containing cooking and sleeping areas with food.
- Small propane bottles (so the grower can avoid detection of wood smoke).
- Fertilizer, weapons, garbage, dead animals.
- Individuals armed with rifles out of hunting season.
Lastly, it is common for the pesticides and herbicides used during illegal marijuana cultivation to be illegal and unsafe – please do not touch anything! Immediately contact local law enforcement, and be prepared to give as much detail as you remember. Stay safe and stay informed!
I say everybody should grow some at home legally.
Wise up, This grow isn’t about weed use, it’s about money. No arrests = Surveillance at this site is complete, all perps are known. Grows on public lands pose a significant health and safety risk to the public. If you need pot get the card and grow it yourself like… Read more »
Folks, I don’t know what planet you come from, but I have seen plenty of stupid and dangerous people under the influence of marijuana and combo marijuana/alcohol/and meth. I even had a friend killed by a driver under the influence of all three. So give it a rest. We all… Read more »
Buffoon: Illegals and cartels secure the boarder and put the squeeze on both. Or leave the boarders open and have both problems continue to get worse for years to come.
My point of view is that, as an adult citizen of a country founded on the notion of individual liberty, it’s none of your damn business what I put in my body. Marijuana has been de facto legal in California and other states for more than a decade and the… Read more »
Hans: I agree with you completely up to a point. I don’t care what you put in your body. My concern comes when you put your body in a vehicle and then put that vehicle on the same road that I’m on. Then I don’t like it and it becomes… Read more »
I am not anti-police or pro-drug, I am pro-logic and pro-earth, to further explain my view; in this particular case, what did the tax payer get out of it? with 9 agencies represented here, what did we get besides a hint of what we expect to see next year with… Read more »
not much to say after that post….other than you sure did name yourself appropriately!
It seems to me that if people knew and cared as much about being educated as they do about drugs — maybe there wouldn’t be as much drug use.
Plain and simple…read the police beats. The story is the same over and over again. Drunk people doing stupid things. I can only imagine how sick LEO are of dealing with drunk people. You never see ‘person high on marijuana’ calls in the police beat. It’s very clear that marijuana… Read more »
why would someone put thumbs down to a procedurel ? bennett maybe you could find an answer ?
It’s amazing how many of you drift “off the main topic”, regarding the story. The sad part is the destruction or desecration of our wonderful public lands, our National Forest, the very reason most of us live and work here. I wish more locals would take a proactive stance against… Read more »
It’s amazing how you don’t take other relevant points into account, why is marijuana illegal when it is prescribed by doctors in treatment to the ill? Why is it illegal when the studies show it is a lot safer then Alcohol? Why do we allow too see things in the… Read more »
I can guarantee you these grow sites are controlled by the Mexican drug cartels and the people tending to them are surely illegal aliens…..Do you really think that if you even caught the care takers of the crops they would do any serious time in jail,,,, heck they don’t even… Read more »
You can’t guarantee that Roy, it is a good assumption though.
There are however some U.S. citizens out there growing illegally too.
Every illegal grow site that I have heard of thru my law enforcement contacts has been conducted and financed by the Mexican drug cartels and that includes those in the Eastern Sierras…
So chances are Law Enforcement is okay with drug cartels (allegedly) getting away with doing this to our lands, as long as they eradicate the plants? It’s not the plants fault, it’s the people’s, isn’t that your argument on gun rights? Plants don’t hurt people, People hurt people! See what… Read more »
Terminated with (EXTREME PREJUDICE), right, ROY ? About the manpower thing…I read a story 2 or 3 years back about a local DFW warden,formerly DFG, who staked out a spot in Yosemite National Park wearing a gilley suit for THREE days to catch a poacher. He must’ve wanted that guy… Read more »
DFW also does stake outs to make sure no one is over limit on their invasive trout catch.
Both the fish and the deer stakeouts make the pot raid with no arrest look really stupid.
Every agency involved is ignorant of the growing process. The criminals would be back very soon to pick up their crop. Instead they ruin all chances of catching anyone when they have their stupid (I wish I could say little) weed plant pulling party. It just further proves the war… Read more »
Mark….The top-of-the-ladder drug dudes that were financing and in charge of this operation couldn’t care less if the people watering and taking care of things gets busted or not…..either way,they lose their weed and $$$..so IF LE did sit back and wait on someone to show up,all that would do… Read more »
The efforts of these agencies is reactive. If they were proactive they would go after the source. So if it’s going to be business as usual we can all expect to read a similar article or more in the Sierra Wave about this time next year.
Perhaps this is what they can do with the resources they have. BK
You might be right Benett, I know for a fact there’s job security in the way they’re going about it. Now it would be interesting to know how much this raid cost the taxpayer because it will cost at least as much if not more next year. See ya’all next… Read more »
Thats right! This is costing us, how do any of us support this counter productive approach of deterring our preventing this in the future, just a reflection of a society with backwards priorities.. With all the other drugs and problems out there, law enforcement spends way to much time and… Read more »
Next Year!!, and in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024…. waste of money get the point?
If its illegal aliens or “cartel” …. it sounds like a immigration problem to me. If Marijuana was legal it would depreciate in value, we all know when any drug is illegal the value goes up. Marijuana hard to smuggle across our boarders so the “Cartel” grows it in our… Read more »
is the valley asleep how do these people get there equipment to these out of the way places without detection ?
People look the other way. Lots of people out here buy their product. Too many. They have active supporters. Just read some of the comments here. Pathetic but true.
Your right DT! A lot of people buy and purchase Marijuana products, and if it wasn’t so stigmatized, people would come out of the wood work in admission to use and support of, and then a lot more would question what they hear about marijuana users and effects… How come… Read more »
You mean the NFL that’s all about making money but has Non-profit status with the IRS? They all must be democrats.
I’m not sure what you mean? I was sayin how money and certain area’s where money comes from can manipulate or mold a person’s perspective if there is incentive or reward to think in ways that benefit the sponsor, so in the past the NFL had stiff punishment for marijuana… Read more »
Mark, why the swipe at Democrats? I thought Democrats were for more taxes and Republicans got off on that trickle down crap. I think they both bite!
why the swipe? Because the IRS stifled non-profit status for conservative groups.
I find it ridiculous that the NFL has non-profit status
I don’t think there are any real democrats or republicans or conservatives or liberals. Everybody is just out for themselves. They pick a posture or issue that they can make the most money from exploiting and then trick their constituencies into believing in it so they can get reelected. We… Read more »
Mark: “why the swipe? Because the IRS stifled non-profit status for conservative groups.” http://www.salon.com/2013/05/15/meet_the_group_the_irs_actually_revoked_democrats/ Everyone agrees that the IRS shouldn’t have targeted groups with “Tea Party” or “Patriot” in their names for special scrutiny in awarding tax-exempt status. NBC News reports two agents have been disciplined for doing so, and… Read more »
p ite, WE latins are sneaky like that.
when they bust these places do they take evidence as in fingerprints for future reference or to see if they already know these people ?
p ite….Probably because in a court of law and trial,a good defense lawyer could tear that evidence apart when it comes to convicting someone of something not seen and found in the desert…
Their are few in Inyo County that can really afford a good defense attorney! To top it off our last DA refused to talk to the public or press in any way.
Hmmm-because it was not in Mono county?
I take it you don’t understand mutual aid between neighboring counties??? Most counties assist each other in operations of this size. Unless they have an issue with them that is.
To be fair – the MLPD did not take part either. BK
MLPD functions on a skeleton staff, MCSO has a full staff. I don’t think the comparison is equal.
Right on the mark LOL.
Impress me with an arrest..
Inter agency back patting is more like it. Sounds like something SL or significant other would say
Hmmmm no Mono County Sheriff’s Department. I wonder why???? I guess they don’t need that kind of mutual aid. LOL
Nine agencies and no arrest? That was fun boys, cya all next year. The site should have been staked out, arrest made, then they could have their nine agency camp out, clean up party. But if they did it that way they might not be able to have their camp… Read more »
Meanwhile Yosemite burns……
I read the other day,since Colorado legalized Marijuana,illegal grows are more abundant,as well as 60 % of the marijuana people are buying is bought from the “street-vendors” and not the over-priced,over-taxed legal stores.
Ya see what happens Wayne when our government tries outlaw something that any bone head can grow and half our country has really enjoyed for the last 50 years? It’s almost like our goverment hates to see people have any fun anymore. Maybe I should move to Jamaica man?
Just think of the Hemp-Crete, biodegradable plastics, paper products or better yet the medicinal potential that is in that beautiful plant… unfortunately we may never be able to, as a society be able to utilize the potential in the marijuana plant, because a lot of people don’t merge to new… Read more »
In a society that makes sense, law enforcement would be taking over these farms and profiting from them AND THEN closing and repairing the land this could also irritate the original growers so much they may expose themselves. I’m not saying this is the what law enforcement should be doing… Read more »
To suggest that law enforcement would sell illegal drugs to make a profit goes off the deep end. BK
It’s a herd Benett.
I don’t get it. BK
Marijana is not a drug . You referred to it as one only because our goverment incorrectly classified it as one. It’s a plant that something other than man created.
There are many plants that are considered drugs. I don’t really have a problem with marijuana with the exception of people operating vehicles when they’ve used too much. But your plant argument really doesn’t hold much water. There are many potent prescription drugs that are derived from plants, not to… Read more »
I wouldn’t be surprised, I mean we have knowledge of the CIA getting caught in their shortcomings, we know banking firms HSBC can get away with laundering money for cartels, we know law enforcement can execute unarmed citizens in the street, and we just turn a blind eye, accept it… Read more »
But??? this video gives a example of law enforcement selling the guns they get from the hand me down programs (from the military), and quite frankly loosing a lot of them…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLntIDEo3CQ
I understand BK but spending millions fighting a war on drugs that were not going to win doesn’t seem to make any sense at all. Perhaps its time to change our strategy.
I’m just thinking outside the box.