Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE) seized more than 800 marijuana plants while serving a search warrant in Madras Friday. It was the continuation of an investigation into a Chinese cartel that resulted in a record bust in June.
CODE said the warrant at a home on NE 10th Street near NE Cedar Street in Madras netted 60 pounds of bulk, unprocessed marijuana and 807 plants.
Detectives also found the grow site used shoddy, jerry-rigged wiring that bypassed circuit breakers to power processing equipment, fans and lighting. CODE notes that overloaded electrical wiring has caused fires at other grow sites.
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Another common feature of grow sites is that they often divert water meant for nearby properties. CODE said this grow site diverted an estimated 2,421 gallons of water per day. That’s almost as much as the average person uses in one month, according to U.S. government estimates.
This site was also infested with black mold, CODE said.
Several suspects were identified and arrests are expected.
CODE said this was a continuation of the June 2022 investigation search warrants related to an international drug cartel that allegedly grows and processes illegal marijuana in Madras and Culver. That pot, CODE said, would then be shipped to Portland where it would be distributed nationwide.
