Pot bust nets 200 pounds

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November 06, 2009

By Anita Burke

Mail Tribune

GRANTS PASS — A traffic stop near Ashland sparked an investigation that led authorities to a massive marijuana-growing operation in Grants Pass that apparently was producing hundreds of pounds more than is allowed under the site's medical marijuana permits.

Police on Oct. 29 seized 200 pounds of marijuana at the Wilderville Avenue operation and arrested three Grants Pass residents on related drug charges.

The investigation began when an Oregon State Police trooper stopped a southbound 2000 Honda Civic with Nevada license plates on Interstate 5 near milepost 12 for a traffic violation at about 5:50 a.m. on Oct. 29. A subsequent investigation with the help of a drug-detection dog found a pound of marijuana in the car.

The 46-year-old driver and his 49-year-old female passenger, both from Las Vegas, said they had gotten the pot from what they believed was a medical-marijuana production site, police reported. They had traded cash and work pruning marijuana plants for the drug, they told police.

OSP said charges still are pending against the two, who weren't identified in the press release issued Thursday. OSP officials could not be reached for more information Thursday afternoon.

With the information from the stop, the Rogue Area Drug Enforcement team, which includes te Grants Pass Department of Public Safety, the Oregon State Police, the Josephine County Sheriff's Office, the Josephine County District Attorney's Office and Josephine County Community Corrections, got a search warrant for the growing site, OSP said.

Detectives found evidence of a large-scale marijuana-growing operation capable of producing hundreds of pounds of marijuana.

Two registered growers there were producing medical marijuana for 13 patients. The legal amount of usable marijuana that can be possessed for 13 patients is 19.5 pounds. The roughly 180 pounds of marijuana in excess of that legal amount likely would have been worth $450,000 on the open market, where it could fetch about $2,500 per pound, conservative estimates by law-enforcement authorities indicated.

The growers and another person — Brenda Thomas, 43, Susan Bryant, 48, and Thomas Bletko, 50 — all were arrested on charges of manufacture and possession of marijuana.

Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail aburke@mailtribune.com.

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