Detectives in Walnut Creek, California investigated a man and woman suspected of robbing a liquor store, and stumbled on a fully-functioning DMT lab at their home nearby in Brentwood. Police say that some of the suspects allegedly used explosive materials in the presence of a child to extract and synthesize DMT.

Danielle Kumerow, 42, and Maxwell Hayworth, 44, allegedly entered Hops and Scotch, a Walnut Creek-based liquor store, and robbed them for $50,000 to $60,000 worth of alcohol, in bottles. Walnut Creek, where the liquor store was located, is known for its upscale shopping. The liquor store robbery took place on March 23, at about 12:10 a.m., and video footage shows a man and woman loading bottles of liquor into a Nissan Frontier after cutting a hole into the wall, authorities said. They rented the Frontier ahead of the crime that took place, police said.

The Mercury News reports “the pair became suspects when a rental car used in the break-in was linked back to Kumerow, court records show. But when police showed up to their home on Shasta Daisy Lane in Brentwood, they were surprised to discover lab equipment associated with the psychedelic drug DMT, authorities said.”

CBS News reports that authorities say they found three containers of an explosive compound used in the process to make DMT. Upon learning about a possibly explosive compound, The Walnut Creek Police Department bomb squad was called in and determined that the compound in the containers was triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, which is a highly volatile explosive. DMT makers use TATP because it can be easily manufactured from readily accessible reagents and is extremely difficult to detect due to its  lack of UV absorbance, fluorescence, or facile ionization. 

The area in Brentwood was evacuated for safety as crews moved the containers of TATP to another location for detonation, while one container had to be detonated in place. All the detonations reportedly went safely.

Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office announced the operation last month. On the morning of March 26, detectives served a search warrant at a residence in the 800 block of Shasta Daisy Drive.

Johnathan McCarthy, 29, was also arrested and booked into the Martinez Detention Facility on an outstanding warrant for being a parolee at large, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Court records show that both suspects, Kumerow and Hayworth, are facing charges of alleged burglary, grand theft, manufacturing and possessing a controlled substance, and child endangerment. 

One of the suspects walked free after posting bail. Hayworth remains in jail with his bail set at $380,000, but Kumerow posted $250,000 bail and is a free woman while the case is pending. Both are due in court for their next hearing on May 13.

The Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office announced that they’d be open to tips about the alleged crimes that took place in the Brentwood home.

What DMT Labs Do

While the extraction process involved dangerous chemicals, the compound itself is found throughout nature and used by multiple cultures.

DMT or N, N-Dimethyltryptamine is a substituted tryptamine that occurs naturally in many plants and animals—including the human body—which is structurally similar to psilocybin and produces short, more intense hallucinations. At least one study has shown that the pineal gland has high concentrations of INMT, which has a role in the biosynthesis of DMT which is present in mammalian brains.

DMT labs create the compound in an attempt to produce the powerful, psychedelic effects. It can be smoked as a crystal, eaten or drunk as a tea, injected, or snorted. It’s a bit more than a party drug as the psychedelic experience provides an intense ego shift that can be a death-like purge or bring on an epiphany.

It appears in Amazonian plants used for ayahuasca like chacruna and Mimosa tenuiflora as (5-MeO-DMT) and in certain species of cacti, or in animals like toads as bufotenin (5-HO-DMT).

High Times typically reports on the potential for DMT in the field of medicine, such as its potential to treat depression or other conditions. In a study published in February in Nature Scientific Reports, researchers explored the effect that DMT had on the mental health of study participants. An analysis of the data from both studies showed that participants had a significant reduction in depression symptoms following the administration of DMT, suggesting that the drug might have potential as a quick-acting treatment with therapeutic effects on mood. The study also showed that the intensity of the psychedelic experience with DMT was linked to improvements in mental health.

Though less prevalent than cannabis or psilocybin, DMT labs pop up from time to time. Usually, however, the ability to manufacture it is simply not worth the risks involved.

The post DMT Lab Discovered in Brentwood, California During Robbery Raid first appeared on High Times.

The post DMT Lab Discovered in Brentwood, California During Robbery Raid appeared first on Paradise Found.

Law enforcement officials in Tennessee have shut down a cannabis cultivation site that was operating in a converted church, seizing about 2,000 weed plants in the process. The raid on the church, which was conducted last week by the Stewart County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO), was the result of a weeks-long investigation, according to law enforcement officials.

Although the plant count was not especially high for commercial marijuana growing operations, Sheriff Frankie Gray noted that the bust shut down Stewart County’s largest discovered weed farm ever.

“The sheriff’s office shut down the largest marijuana grow in county history,” Gray said in a statement to local media.

In a social media post on Friday, the sheriff’s office noted that deputies had been conducting an investigation of the church for three weeks after local residents reported a strong odor emanating from the property. The investigators conducted traffic stops to question people they had seen coming from and going to the church and were told that hemp was being grown at the site, which is legal in Tennessee with a license from the state.

Sheriff’s deputies also investigated the electricity and water usage at the property, which was originally built as a Methodist church in 1960 and later sold. Investigators learned that the grow operation had a water bill that was characterized by local media as “high” and was using about $3,000 per month in electricity.

Last week, the SCSO obtained a search warrant for the church on Highway 46 in the community of Indian Mound. Sheriff’s deputies and law enforcement officers from the 23rd Judicial Drug Task Force then raided the site on Thursday and discovered about 2,000 cannabis plants including live plants and others that had already been harvested and dried. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation also assisted in serving the search warrant.

Cops Fear Possible Booby Traps At Cultivation Site

The sheriff’s office said the marijuana cultivation operation included elaborate lighting and watering systems operated by automatic timers. The agency also reported that the search of the site was slowed as deputies investigated “the possibility of booby traps laid out for law enforcement.” The SCSO also reported that investigators found “a large amount of possibly toxic chemicals” at the site.

Law enforcement officers took one person into custody when the search warrant was served, although officials did not specify what charges the individual was being held on. Others are wanted for questioning, the sheriff’s office said.

The converted church, which is located in northern central Tennessee about 70 miles northwest of Nashville, is listed for sale on Zillow, according to media reports. The property is listed as having four bedrooms and three bathrooms. The listing also notes that the site, which formerly had two buildings, was converted into one building with the addition of a breezeway. The person posting the listing said they were “looking for a quick sale” of the property.

Tennessee is one of only about a dozen U.S. states that have not adopted a comprehensive plan to legalize medical marijuana, although a limited measure to legalize low-THC CBD oil was passed in 2015. Possession of even small amounts of cannabis is still a misdemeanor criminal offense.

Those who commented on the social media post from the sheriff’s office in conservative Stewart County were mostly in favor of the law enforcement action to shut down the cannabis cultivation site discovered at the church last week.

“Our Law Enforcement Agency is always on top of things. Great job!” one person commented.

“Thank you for shutting this operation down,” said another. “Your hard work is appreciated. Stay safe.”

“Thankful for our sheriff’s department and all involved,” added a third Facebook user.

The post Tennessee Authorities Find Weed Cultivation Site Inside Church appeared first on High Times.

The post Tennessee Authorities Find Weed Cultivation Site Inside Church appeared first on Paradise Found.

Last weekend, officials descended upon a warehouse in Oakland, California, allegedly full of illegal cannabis plants, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW). Not only cannabis opponents, but also law-abiding operators are not fans of illegal cannabis operations that they must compete with.

The department said that it’s one of the largest cannabis busts this year in the Bay Area, where illegal operations are common.

Agents raided the warehouse on Sept. 28, located on the 300 block of Adeline Street in Oakland. Law enforcement officers eradicated 41,082 cannabis plants and destroyed 1,841 pounds of “processed cannabis.” Officials say the estimated retail value was $36,930,300.

“We have a history of combating illegal outdoor cannabis grows, which has evolved to a broader range of operations including warehouse grows, in support of establishing a thriving legal marketplace,” Janice Mackey, a CDFW spokesperson told High Times in an email. “CDFW’s cannabis enforcement program is always gathering intelligence, receiving information and conducting an array of investigations with our state and county partners on various aspects of the illegal cannabis supply chain.”

“This is one of the largest cannabis enforcement actions (in terms of retail value) in the Bay Area this year,” said Mackey.

Fox KTVU 2 reports that three guns were confiscated at the scene as well. “No one was arrested, but suspects were interviewed,” Mackey told KTVU 2 in an email. It’s unclear what tipped off officials to the warehouse, but they typically rely on concerned citizens to bring attention to these operations.

CDFW representatives said this is an ongoing investigation and no other information is available at this time. CDFW maintains that it has a public trust responsibility to protect and conserve California’s fish and wildlife resources. Cannabis cultivators, like most other industries, must comply with Fish and Game Code.

CDFW Inspections have led to violations for water diversions and storage, grading, chemical use, wildlife threats, timber conversion, and public safety, the department notes. Between 2013 and 2018, over 700 inspections resulted in 399 tons of trash removed from public and private lands including 2.4 million feet of irrigation pipe, 50 tons of fertilizer, and 465 gallons of chemicals, many illegal. In addition, the removal of 709 dams and water diversions related to cannabis grows resulted in restoration of 800 million gallons of water back into local watersheds.

CDFW agents said they seized nearly 40,000 cannabis plants in raids on April 25, The San Francisco Standard reported. In that bust, a similar amount, over $36 million worth of cannabis, was seized in the raids at 744 Kevin Court and 4825 San Leandro St.

Oakland residents are used to rising crime in the area—sometimes with cannabis businesses and the people behind them as the victims. Last year, C.R.A.F.T. (Citizens Research Alliance for Therapeutics) Cannabis was robbed at gunpoint and about $100,000 in product was stolen. Making things worse, eyewitnesses say it took “hours” for police to arrive at the scene.

 A man was shot at the Oakanna dispensary in February 2022. Oakanna dispensary owner Joshua Chase was shot in the foot after a group of burglars tripped an alarm in the early morning hours at his relatively new retail facility. 

Criminals are also getting creative in the way they target cannabis businesses, such as smash and grab attempts, now with heavy machinery. Security footage obtained last June shows a huge forklift being used in a break-in attempt at another dispensary.

The cannabis delivery industry in the area has also been hit hard. Access to banking services could solve many of those problems and make dispensaries safer for the people who work in them.

CDFW Cannabis Enforcement Ramps Up

Wildlife officers with the CDFW’s Marijuana Enforcement Team (MET) also spearheaded several enforcement investigations in rural areas during August and September, a Sept. 27 news release indicates.

During Sept. 4-8, MET officers raided several illegal cannabis operations on rural private lands in Shasta, Tehama and Sutter counties. Often officers depend on concerned citizens to drop the dime: Officers were tipped off by a hunter who stumbled on one of the trespass grow sites and reported it. 

MET officers destroyed more than 5,500 illegal plants, arrested four suspects, seized several firearms including one stolen handgun, dismantled several water diversions and removed thousands of pounds of trash. Backup was provided from CDFW’s Air Services and K9 Units, as well as the California Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Eradication and Prevention of Illicit Cannabis (EPIC) task force.

“Many recreationists who venture into California’s backcountry are our best eyes and ears for reporting poaching, pollution and illegal cannabis cultivation on public land,” said Nathaniel Arnold, Acting Chief of Enforcement for CDFW. “These enforcement actions not only provide public and consumer safety, but they also combat the illegal cannabis supply chain. I could not be more proud of these dedicated officers.”

The recent raids in the Bay Area and beyond highlight the issue and proliferation of illegal cannabis operations in both urban and rural areas of California.

The post Nearly $37M of Illegal Weed Found in Oakland, California Warehouse appeared first on High Times.

The post Nearly $37M of Illegal Weed Found in Oakland, California Warehouse appeared first on Paradise Found.

Infamous (and now deceased) El Paso drug trafficker Jimmy Chagra’s son, 44-year-old Jamiel Alexander Chagra Nichols, was arrested for allegedly selling cocaine, fentanyl, and LSD. Some of his clients included Fort Bliss soldiers, Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) officials said. 

The El Paso Times reports that the special agents arrested Nichols on Friday, August 18. It’s currently estimated that five Texans die every day, on average, from a fentanyl overdose. In April of this year, Texas Governor Greg Abbott launched a $10 million effort, the “One Pill Kills” campaign, to combat the fentanyl crisis, including sending overdose-reversing meds (Narcan) to all 254 counties. 

The news of Nichols’ arrest comes after authorities allegedly found over 21,900 dosages of LSD at his El Paso home during a multi-agency drug investigation, DPS officials said. The search warrant that led to the drug seizure and Nichols’s arrest was carried out by the Fentanyl Overdose Response Team of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in El Paso, who paired up with Texas DPS special agents. His arrest was a long time in the making, resulting from a six-month-long investigation, although due to his ancestry, it’s safe to assume that Nichols has been on the government’s list for some time. 

According to El Paso County Jail records, Nichols now faces four state counts of manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance. Nichols was released from jail Monday on a total surety bond of $28,000.  

Nichols’s notorious father is Jamiel Alexander “Jimmy” Chagra, who made a name for himself as El Paso’s most wanted drug trafficker of the 1970s. Las Vegas City Life once described him as “the undisputed marijuana kingpin of the Western world” (he also dealt heavily in cocaine). 

The son of a rug merchant family, Chagra originally worked as a carpet salesman before breaking into the drug smuggling trade in 1969. He trafficked drugs from both Mexico and Columbia using planes and boats (which still happens; recently, the feds seized 223 pounds of cocaine and arrested two people headed toward Long Beach from Columbia). 

Chagra was also known for his epic, high-stakes gambling, which, by all accounts, he not only loved but used to launder money earned through drug trafficking. Before his arrest, he was estimated to be worth approximately $100 million ($500 million today). Charga’s downfall can be marked to November 21, 1978, when Assistant U.S. Attorney James Kerr was shot near his home by two men who fired 19 bullets at his car. Kerr lived; his only injuries sustained were some minor glass cuts, but law enforcement was officially ready to get Chagra senior. 

In February 1979, the OG Chagra was arrested on trafficking charges. He’d appear before Judge John Wood, nicknamed “Maximum John” due to his reputation for giving out the maximum sentence on drug crimes. Chagra faced a possible life sentence. He attempted to bribe Maximum John. It didn’t work. So, he arranged to have him assassinated, eventually admitting to hiring, of all people, hitman Charles Harrelson, who, in this ongoing father-son story, is dad to actor and cannabis lover Woody Harrelson (whose new cannabis lounge, The Woods, located in West Hollywood, California, is now open for business).

On May 29, 1979, Wood was murdered. He was shot in the back outside his home and died as a result, making him the first federal judge to die from an assassination in more than a century. Chagra went to court on his drug charges and was found guilty in August 1979 and sentenced to 30 years in prison. Harrelson (senior) was also eventually caught and convicted of being the gunman, thanks to Chagra talking about the assassination when his brother, Joe Chagra, visited him in prison after the feds bugged the rooms of the Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas, where Chagra resided. 

Joe Chagra allegedly tried for a plea deal for his involvement and served six and a half years in prison of his ten-year sentence. He was released but died from injuries sustained in a car accident in 1996. 

Jimmy Chagra’s wife, Elizabeth, also went to prison for 30 years for delivering the payout money. Charles Harrelson was slapped with two consecutive life terms plus five more years. And Chagra was acquitted of Wood’s murder but found guilty of obstructing justice and conspiring to smuggle drugs. Due to health reasons, he was released on December 9, 2003, with rumors circulating that he was placed in the Witness Protection Program. He died from cancer on July 25, 2008, in a trailer camp in Mesa, Arizona.

While the family’s story is already juicy enough for a major studio to turn it into a mini-series, as for how the current generation’s stories end, we’ll have to continue covering the Nichols case for the latest in the Chagra epic drama. 

The post Son of Infamous Jimmy Chagra Arrested in Texas on Drug Charges appeared first on High Times.

The post Son of Infamous Jimmy Chagra Arrested in Texas on Drug Charges appeared first on Paradise Found.

Another location of a psilocybin mushroom dispensary chain in Canada was raided by police, about a month after its earlier location was raided. Psilocybin advocates in Canada remain undeterred however, with no plans to back down.

CTV News in London reports that on Aug. 17, St. Thomas Police Service (STPS) officers in Ontario in Canada executed a warrant on the FunGuyz (pronounced fungi’s) magic mushroom shop. It was not their first rodeo with law enforcement raids.

STPS released a press release on Aug. 18. “A 39-year-old London resident has been arrested after a swift response from the St. Thomas Police Service (STPS)  regarding community concerns about the open sale of psilocybin, commonly known as magic mushrooms, at a newly opened business in the city.”

The store sold products like psilocybin-infused edibles and microdoses of mushrooms. At other FunGuyz locations, for instance, shrooms were sold in 7-, 14-, or 28-gram bags of dried mushrooms labeled by the strains Golden Teachers, Blue Meanies, African Pyramid, Amazonian, Penis Envy, and so on. Microdose psilocybin options for most of the strains of shrooms are available as well in 50, 100, or 200 micrograms. They also sell psilocybin-infused gummies, chocolate, tea, and other products.

“Our street crimes unit did arrest a 39-year-old London resident with possession of a controlled substance for trafficking purposes,” said STPS Corporate Communications Director Samantha Wakefield. “The individual was an employee of the establishment here.”

STPS officers said neighborhood community members raised concerns, however the police were already aware of the operation.

Local reports indicate that FunGuyz locations have played cat and mouse with law enforcement, frequently reopening for business. It’s the second location in two months to be targeted. Police at the St. Thomas raid identified various strains of mushrooms inside the store and seized 7,150 grams of psilocybin with an estimated street value of $71,504.

The owner, who wished to remain anonymous, told CTV News, “We like charges because we’re just going to do a constitutional challenge with everyone that gets charged.”

FunGuyz vs. Canadian Police

Locations in other provinces also face closure thanks to ongoing law enforcement actions. A FunGuyz location in Montreal, Quebec was raided by police last July.

CTV News reported that several police officers descended on the FunGuyz shop hours after the company opened their first location in the province of Quebec in Montreal’s Sainte-Marie district. The shop was raided during its opening day, so day one of sales was likely not a secret. Four people were arrested, police say, and their investigation into the shroom dispensary is ongoing.

“We’re just getting started and we hope that the word gets out,” Edgar Gorbans told CTV News Windsor. As of July, FunGuyz runs 11 other stores in Ontario, plans to open more in Quebec, and has locations close to Detroit, Michigan.

“We’re dealing with people in active addiction who have very little in the way of impulse control, have very little in their ability to say no,” said Director Don Trepanier. “When we have uncontrolled access to these substances, then it becomes a problem.”

The Transformation of Psilocybin in Canada

Psilocybin is prohibited in Canada under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA). The drug has been an illegal controlled substance since 1975. Despite the status of psilocybin, the government concedes that medical properties probably do exist.

Canada’s former health minister used her authority to grant a limited number of legal exemptions for psilocybin, but that was mainly only given to people with terminal illness and treatment-resistant depression.

“There is increasing interest in the potential therapeutic uses of magic mushrooms and of psilocybin, one of the active ingredients in magic mushrooms,” the Government of Canada states. “While clinical trials with psilocybin have shown promising results, at this time, there are no approved therapeutic products containing psilocybin in Canada or elsewhere. Clinical trials are the most appropriate and effective way to advance research with unapproved drugs such as psilocybin while protecting the health and safety of patients.”

The production, sale, and possession of psilocybin remains illegal in Canada. There are over 200 species of psilocybin mushrooms, and officials don’t want people taking the risk into their own hands, given that similar varieties are potentially poisonous.

Store operators, however, often don’t care and commonly open up shop in broad daylight anyways. Advocates in Canada have been pushing the envelope with psilocybin dispensaries operating in the gray area. Canadian advocate Dana Larsen, for instance, opened up an online psilocybin dispensary and storefront locations, four in Vancouver at one point.

Psilocybin mushrooms are being studied for the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, trauma, alcoholism, irritable bowel syndrome, and other medical conditions. There are efforts to decriminalize psilocybin and other psychedelics in Colorado, Washington, Massachusetts, and cities throughout California. Many people visit the dispensaries to get microdoses to treat various conditions.

The post Shroom Shop Raided in Ontario, Canada appeared first on High Times.

The post Shroom Shop Raided in Ontario, Canada appeared first on Paradise Found.

A cannabis farm raid in the Emerald Triangle took a turn for the worse, leaving a dog dead, and people have questions.

Los Angeles Times reports that outrage is growing as details about the incident unfold, given the farm held a license at the state level and was in the process of approval at the county level. As outrage grows, some locals are calling for the resignation of Trinity County Sheriff Tim Saxon. 

A 36-second video clip shows a Cal Fire officer fatally shooting a dog in a chaotic attempt to control the situation. The video was uploaded by Kym Kemp, who regularly reports on the Emerald Triangle. An officer says in the video, “Hey, don’t touch the dog, he just got pepper sprayed.” Keep in mind that an unlicensed commercial cannabis operation in the county is supposed to be a $500 misdemeanor.

On May 1-2, 2023, police from the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office obtained a search warrant in the Hayfork and Trinity Pines area. Agents with the North State Major Crimes Investigation Team, Cal Fire, the Trinity County Environmental Health Department, and the Trinity County District Attorney’s Office Victim Advocate assisted in the operation. 

SF Gate reports that pot farmer Nhia Pao Yang is not a native English speaker. But the officers shouted commands in English, so he walked towards them with his hands raised. One of the dogs on the site approached one of the officers, who shot the dog. 

The police report describes the dogs as “aggressive,” using the word three times, claiming the dogs were trained to attack.

“During the service of the Search Warrant at Nhia Yang’s property, Investigators encountered Yang who had five aggressive dogs on the property,” the press release reads, which was posted on Facebook. “Nhia Yang, was non-compliant with Investigators and attempted to keep Investigators away from him by standing near one of the aggressive dogs. When Investigators moved to take Nhia Yang into custody, one of the aggressive dogs attempted to attack an Investigator, who defended himself by firing one shot at the dog. The injured dog was transported to a local veterinary clinic where it passed away. Nhia Yang of Hayfork, CA was arrested for illegal marijuana cultivation, possession of marijuana for sale and resisting arrest.”

Saxon said the dog was killed by a Cal Fire employee and that Cal Fire was conducting an investigation into the matter.

Yang was later charged with unlawful possession of cannabis, lack of dog licenses, rabies vaccinations, unreasonable tethering of an animal, allowing a dog to attack or injure someone, and resisting arrest.

California’s Dual Licensing Mess

According to Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) records, Yang’s family has a state license for their small family farm, and they were in the process of getting a license under Trinity County.

Proposition 64 created a dual licensing system that requires farms to obtain both state and local approvals to grow commercial cannabis. Los Angeles Times reports that thousands of farms in Trinity County remain unlicensed. License applicants in 2021 were required to start over, when locals convinced a judge to overturn the county’s cannabis license system because it did not include an environmental review.

The DCC then issued a letter reassuring farms that it would take no action against those who lost their local licenses because of the ruling. 

Even the sheriff’s office admits that the dual licensing system isn’t currently working.

“What I wish for is that we would have a consistent policy throughout the state,” Trinity County Sheriff Tim Saxon told the Los Angeles Times. The dual licensing system, he said, is “placing many sheriffs in an uncomfortable situation, including myself.”

The post Officer Shoots and Kills Tethered Dog in Weed Farm Raid Gone Wrong appeared first on High Times.

The post Officer Shoots and Kills Tethered Dog in Weed Farm Raid Gone Wrong appeared first on Paradise Found.

British police this week reportedly uncovered thousands of cannabis plants in an abandoned tire factory in what is being called one of the largest weed busts in the area. 

The British newspaper The Independent reported that law enforcement in the otherwise sleepy Lincolnshire village “busted one of their largest ever cannabis factories after discovering 6,000 plants inside an old tyre factory – believed to be worth around £6.5 million.”

“This is one of the largest cannabis grows we have located in Lincolnshire to date and follows the excellent development of intelligence,” said detective inspector Richard Nethercott, as quoted by the Lincolnshire World.

“Cannabis production is far from being harmless: it is often linked to wider, organised criminality which is why tackling the wider issue of drug supply is one of our key priorities. Lincolnshire Police remains determined to crack down on criminal enterprises and remove drugs from circulation.”

According to the BBC, three men “aged 28, 38, and 42, all of no fixed address, were taken into custody following the raid,” and the plants were “removed and destroyed.”

The raid “took place at the property situated behind a countryside village pub at around 8am on Tuesday,” according to The Independent, which said that the property was the location of “the Old Kings Head Tyre Factory in Hubberts Bridge, near Boston.”

While the raid may have been remarkable for Lincolnshire, it falls under a familiar story genre here at High Times, which has chronicled some of the more peculiar cannabis busts from across the pond. 

In 2019, we told you about the 120-year-old Victorian style theater in London that was the site of a $51 million marijuana grow operation. 

Authorities there surmised that the grow site had been operational for roughly a decade in the bowels of the old Broadway Theater, which was built in 1897.

A spokesperson for the London police said that “officers were called to an address following reports of a disturbance.” 

“They discovered a large number of cannabis plants along with equipment used in the cultivation of cannabis in an area beneath the residential properties. Three men, aged 28, 45, and 47, and a 36-year-old woman have been arrested on suspicion of the cultivation of cannabis. They have all been released under investigation,” the spokesperson said at the time.

A couple years later, the British were at it again, this time discovering an illicit grow operation at a 17th century castle in Somerset, located in southern England.

That same year, in 2021, a massive growhouse was discovered in London’s financial district, which had gone quiet amid the lockdown restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Police at the time responded to reports of a pungent cannabis odor in the area.

“This is the first cannabis factory in the City, no doubt being set up in response to fewer people being out and about during the pandemic who might have noticed any unusual activity,” Andy Spooner, the London detective overseeing the investigation, said at the time. “However, this demonstrates that City of London Police continues to actively police the Square Mile, bearing down on any crime committed here.” 

And last year, the English village of West Parley provided yet another example after locals there discovered a half-dozen suspicious plants growing in a community garden. 

The marijuana plants were tough to miss, with one local remarking at the time that they were “towering above the bedding plants.”

The post British Police Find 6,000 Cannabis Plants in Abandoned Tire Factory appeared first on High Times.

The post British Police Find 6,000 Cannabis Plants in Abandoned Tire Factory appeared first on Paradise Found.

Spanish police said over the weekend that they had completed the largest international seizure of cannabis. 

The Guardia Civil announced on Saturday that it had dismantled an organization with more than 32 tons of bud stored throughout the country in Toledo, Ciudad Real, Valencia, and Asturias.

The raid was known as the “Jardines operation.”

“The Civil Guard has seized the largest cache of packaged marijuana found so far. The Jardines operation has concluded with the seizure of 32,370.2 kilograms of marijuana buds, the largest seizure of this substance, not only in Spain, but also internationally. Its equivalence in complete plants would be approximately 1,100,000 copies,” the police said.

Or, as the BBC put it, the “weight of the seized plants is roughly equivalent to more than five adult African elephants.”

The police said that through “a complex business network, [the suspects] sent vacuum-packed marijuana throughout the national territory, as well as to Switzerland, Holland, Germany, and Belgium, among other European countries.”

“The twenty detainees – nine men and eleven women between the ages of 20 and 59 – were part of an organization with offices in Toledo, Ciudad Real, Valencia and Asturias, which controlled the entire drug production and distribution process,” the police said in the announcement on Saturday. “The investigation began with an inspection by the Civil Guard of several industrial hemp plantations in Villacañas (Toledo). The main investigated owned a company with which they acquired the seeds. A second transported and planted them. Another company was in charge of the care, maintenance, collection and drying of the specimens.” 

“Finally, the initial company was in charge of acquiring the already dried plants with the buds and stored them in two warehouses located in the province of Valencia,” they continued “From there, the detainees processed the genre, separating the buds and vacuum packaging them in different formats to send them both to places in Spanish territory and to European countries, mainly Switzerland, Holland, Germany and Belgium.”

According to police, the subsequent raid took place last month in Ciudad Real, with agents from Toledo ultimately discovering “some 37,000 plants distributed in four greenhouses and in the process of drying.”

“The three people who were at the time of the performance were arrested. In the ship, the Civil Guard also finds four tons of marijuana stings stored in several bags. The destination of all the merchandise was the two warehouses in Valencia,” they explained. “In this last province, the Civil Guard has intervened 30,530 kilos of buds, 20 kilos of pollen -all vacuum packed-, 21,600 plants in the process of drying and 231,200 packs of marijuana buds. Documentation has also been found that accredited the existence of several more plantations, machinery for processing, elaboration and packaging, highlighting above all two machines for the extraction of pollen. In this record 15 people have been arrested.”

“Finally, the third and last phase of the exploitation, has consisted of a new inspection in Asturias. The analysis of the plants that were there has also tested positive for psychoactive. 4,000 plants have been seized and two have been arrested,” the police added.

In June, lawmakers in Spain approved a measure clearing the way for medical cannabis to be available by the end of this year.

Patients with conditions such as cancer, pain, endometriosis, fibromyalgia, and epilepsy, among others, will be able to receive a prescription, with experts estimating that hundreds of thousands of individuals in Spain could potentially take advantage of the treatment.

The post Police in Spain Make Largest Ever Seizure of Cannabis appeared first on High Times.

The post Police in Spain Make Largest Ever Seizure of Cannabis appeared first on Paradise Found.

Afroman recently shared that his home in Ohio was raided on Aug. 21 by the Adams County Sheriff’s Office. Although he was in Chicago at the time of the raid, his neighbors told him about what was going on.

He also shared multiple security footage videos on Instagram showing law enforcement searching various areas of the house. “This is supposed to be a drug and narcotic warrant I had to pay technical people top dollar to install my camera system there’s no drugs or guns in my computer screen. These are burglars hoodlums breaking into the houses of law-abiding taxpaying citizens destroying property,” he wrote on Aug. 29. “I had to pay the camera people thousands of dollars to install my camera system I don’t need them kicc-ing down my door spreading monkeypox in my clothes and ripping up my camera systems so nobody will see these thieves disguised as law-enforcement officers stealing my money Just like the cops in Saint Charles Missouri.”

Afroman’s social media posts took off in popularity. As of Aug. 30, Afroman said he thanked “Police Officer Poundcake” for helping him gain 13,000 followers on TikTok. As of Sept. 2, the TikTok post has 4.7 million views.

According to a TMZ Live interview with Afroman, law enforcement didn’t find what they were looking for. “They took, like, some roaches, and a vape pen, and a jar of CBD. I think they thought I had like hundreds and thousands of pounds or something like that,” he said. “They didn’t have to run up my driveway with AR-15s and all kind of assault weapons. I would have gladly just given that to them.” Afroman also mentioned he has footage of cops pulling cash out of the pocket of his clothing.

“They said they want me to come down and make a statement. I need a lawyer, I don’t know why they came here like this,” he said.

TMZ also asked Afroman about a previous burglary that had occurred in the past as well. He said it took three days for police to visit his home and write a report on the incident. He continued to follow up with the local police station about the report. “I was following up with the progress of the case, and I guess the consistency of my calls was irritating them. They told me ‘If you keep calling up it will get addressed.’ I got a funny vibe, so I fell back, you know.”

Interviewers asked him to elaborate on the “funny vibe,” and inquired if that statement felt like a threat. “You know, a cop speaks politically correct…” Afroman started, but said that he felt like the police station told him to stop calling. 

On Sept. 1, a local news channel covering the incident claimed that the search warrant listed “possession of drugs, drug trafficking, and kidnapping.” “No kidnapping victims, no pounds of marijuana (especially in my suit pocc-ets) or narcotics. No charges. No warrant for my arrest,” Afroman wrote. Just A few roaches in my ash tray them on camera destroying my property, stealing my money like the cops in Saint Charles Missouri, and disconnecting my cameras so no one sees them stealing my money.”

Ohio legalized medical cannabis in 2016, but recreational cannabis is not allowed. Although there was a legalization ballot initiative in the works, it has been postponed until the 2023 election.

The post Afroman’s Ohio Residence Raided by Local Law Enforcement appeared first on High Times.

The post Afroman’s Ohio Residence Raided by Local Law Enforcement appeared first on Paradise Found.

The Josephine Marijuana Enforcement Team (JMET) worked with Josephine County Code Enforcement to raid the grow on Aug. 4 in Selma, located in the southwestern region of Oregon. In addition to seizing over 140 plants, 200 pounds of illegal cannabis were also seized and destroyed.

According to the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office, the size of the grow wasn’t a big deal. “Although the size of this grow operation was not large in comparison to others we have seen this year, it was well beyond the legal limit of four plants allowed per Oregon State Law,” the department wrote in a Marijuana Search Warrant document. Just a few days before this raid occurred, JMET conducted four other search warrants and found over 12,000 plants, and over 4,535 kilograms of processed cannabis.

However the report did briefly address why they left four plants behind. “JMET always leaves four legal marijuana plants when we dismantle each grow operation,” the report continued.

One person was arrested on site of the most recent raid, a 51-year-old man charged with unlawful manufacturing and possession of cannabis. Due to other violations on site, including “multiple electrical and solid waste code violations,” this could also result in “civil forfeiture of the property.” It was not specified who would care for the four remaining cannabis plants while the arrested individual is absent.

According to NORML, cultivating four to eight plants in Oregon is considered a misdemeanor, with the possibility of six months jail time and a fine of up to $2,500. Cultivation of more than eight plants is a felony, which could lead to up to 5 years in prison and up to $125,000 in fines.

In October 2021, the Jackson County Board of Supervisors called a State of Emergency regarding the influx of illegal cultivation, and petitioned Gov. Kate Brown for assistance. “Since recreational marijuana was legalized by the voters of Oregon in the November 2014 general election, the illegal and unlawful production of marijuana in our county has overwhelmed the ability of our county and state regulators to enforce relevant laws in our community,” said Jackson County Commissioner Rick Dyer.

Gov. Brown’s spokesperson, Charles Boyle, echoed the support of the governor regarding the need for assistance. “The message is clear—Oregon is not open for business to illegal cannabis grows,” said Boyle. “These are criminal enterprises that deplete water resources while our state is in drought, hold their workforce in inhumane conditions and severely harm our legal cannabis marketplace.”

In December 2021, Gov. Brown passed Senate Bill 893, which provided $25 million to help fund state law enforcement and local community organizations fight against illegal cultivation. Sen. Jeff Golden, who supported the measure, explained the harms of illegal cannabis cultivation both for the environment, as well as legal growers. “Illegal cannabis operations in southern Oregon have been using our limited water supply, abusing local workers, threatening neighbors and negatively impacting businesses run by legal marijuana growers,” Golden said last year.

Oregon has also become home to legislation that will soon allow legal psilocybin therapy programs. The first set of rules will take effect in January 2023, with the rest being finalized by Dec. 31, 2023. However, a few regions of Oregon, such as Linn County, have approved or are considering banning psilocybin treatment centers. Individuals such as Linn County Commissioner Roger Nyquist expressed concerns of potential harm. “My fear is of young people taking mushrooms and going out and doing things that may cost them their life,” Nyquist said. “I just think it’s appropriate to refer this measure to the voters in Linn County and allow them to have a say in this, particularly because they did not vote to support this measure in the first place.”

The post Oregon Law Enforcement Seizes Illegal Cannabis Plants, Leaves Four Plants Behind appeared first on High Times.

The post Oregon Law Enforcement Seizes Illegal Cannabis Plants, Leaves Four Plants Behind appeared first on Paradise Found.