Lea este articulo en español aquí.
Editor’s note: BenitoLink intern Alexis Castro Juarez also contributed to the article.
On May 1 Hollister Fire Department discovered an illegal marijuana grow on Buena Vista Road in north Hollister. Upon inspection San Benito County Sheriff personnel found 19,000 plants, some in green houses, some not.
Commander Yerena of the sheriff’s CASPR (criminal apprehension suppression prevention response) Task Force told BenitoLink illegal grows are not uncommon in the rural parts of the county but this was the largest grow he has seen in three to four years. It was also on the edge of town rather than on a rural plot of land. He said on May 7 they had no suspects and are looking into who owns the land and if the landlord might have known of the grow. On May 8 Yerena said there are still no suspects.
District Attorney Joel Buckingham told BenitoLink an illegal grow of more than six plants in and of itself is a misdemeanor but becomes a felony if the suspect is a registered sex offender, has two prior misdemeanor grows or if there are environmental crimes associated with the grow. Those crimes include illegal use of or allocation of water, leaving trash in or around waterways, use of pesticides or activity that negatively impacts threatened or endangered species.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife investigates these crimes and Yerena told BenitoLink they have not found any issues that warrant Fish and Wildlife involvement at this point in the investigation.
This is an ongoing investigation and more details will be released when available.
We need your help. Support local, nonprofit news! BenitoLink is a nonprofit news website that reports on San Benito County. Our team is committed to this community and providing essential, accurate information to our fellow residents. It is expensive to produce local news and community support is what keeps the news flowing. Please consider supporting BenitoLink, San Benito County’s public service, nonprofit news.
