More than $1 billion in illegal marijuana was seized as part of a massive bust in California, authorities said this week.
“What we want to do is send a clear and loud message to all the cartels and anyone doing illegal operations in the high desert,” Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said in a news release. “Your days here are over and we’re coming for you.”
Billed as the largest illegal weed bust in Los Angeles County history, the operation—as detailed in a press conference on Wednesday (see above)—was focused on the Antelope Valley region. While licensed recreational marijuana sales are indeed legal in the state of California, authorities have argued that illegal sales are flourishing while also having a negative impact on the legal industry, particularly during the pandemic.
The so-called “Marijuana Eradication Operation” began on June 8 and spanned 10 days, with a number of agencies working collaboratively on the effort. According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, a leading problem in the illegal Antelope Valley market is water theft, which is said to occur at an “alarming rate” via hydrants and non-permitted water wells.
“Most Californians would be shocked and disappointed at the amount of water these unlicensed, illegal grows are using, especially as California suffers from a drought,” DEA Associate Special Agent in Charge, Curt Fallin, said Wednesday. “By our calculation, the illegal grows in Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties require an astounding 5.4 million gallons of water a day, every day.”
All told, authorities said Wednesday the operation had resulted in more than 33,000 pounds of harvested marijuana being seized and a total of 131 arrests. Additionally, more than 370,000 plants were seized (and destroyed), amounting to an estimated street value—by cops’ assessment, anyway—of $1.193 billion.
