Mendocino County busts part of California’s $100M in illegal cannabis seizures
A California drug enforcement group tasked with cracking down on illegal cannabis operations seized more than $100 million in unlicensed cannabis products for the third quarter, state regulatory officials reported this month.
The period from July through September also marked a large haul in illegal firearms, with the Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce reporting Oct. 5 a 363% increase from the previous quarter with 69 taken as evidence.
Within the “Emerald Triangle” deemed the hotbed of cannabis cultivation in Northern California, the task force singled out busts in Mendocino County in August that amounted to 43,238 cannabis plants eradicated, valued at more than $45 million.
Illegal outdoor cultivation sites were served with 25 search warrants in which 7,516 pounds of unprocessed cannabis flower were seized. Of the 69 firearms seized, 40 came from these drug busts.
Bill Jones, law enforcement chief for the state Department of Cannabis Control, said the task force has concentrated on large outdoor illegal growing operations.
Jones said the law enforcement group collects intelligence beyond the quarterly haul of illegal guns and illegal product.
“We have a lot of partners. Not only do we share resources. We share the intel we have,” he said. “Our goal is to disrupt the illegal market the best way we can.”
Formed last year, the task force of two-dozen law enforcement agencies statewide includes Fish and Wildlife, as well as a Homeland Security Investigations detail. The Northern California operations focus on Sacramento, along with pockets in the Central Valley and the East Bay. The task force is co-chaired by the Department of Cannabis Control.
Stakeholders in the legal cannabis trade have long complained about how the illicit market threatens their bottom line. The legal cultivation market sat on the verge of a potential collapse in the last few years since growers produced a glut of product with not enough places to sell it.
The state’s task revolved around eliminating the illegal growers, producers and sellers.
Susan Wood covers law, cannabis, production, tech, energy, transportation, agriculture as well as banking and finance. She can be reached at 530-545-8662 or susan.wood@busjrnl.com
