TIPS, HELICOPTER FLIGHTS LEAD LAWMEN TO RECORD HAUL OF MARIJUANA PLANTS

Law enforcement agencies working in an anti-drug operation in Berrien
County last week confiscated 1,900 growing marijuana plants, described as a
record haul for the area.

The plants, spotted from a helicopter in fields and small patches, were
mature and nearly ready for harvest, said Lt. Keith Hafer, commander of the
Berrien County Sheriff's Narcotics Unit.

The plants were found in several locations, including one field where 1,485
plants were seized.

The effort was part of Operation HEMP, which aims to find and destroy
growing marijuana. Sheriff's officers work with the state police, National
Guard and Coast Guard in the search operation.

Hafer said the plants were spotted in plain view by officers in a state
police helicopter. Other patches were found as the result of citizen tips.
The targeted area was in the south Berrien County townships of Niles,
Buchanan, Bertrand, Three Oaks and Galien.

Police spent much of Thursday uprooting and removing the plants, some of
them more than 6 feet tall.

The plants, which filled the back of a pickup truck and a trailer, were
destroyed by burning Monday. No arrests were made, but an investigation is
continuing. Hafer said each cultivated plant, when processed, yields a half
pound of finished marijuana. He estimated the street value of the
marijuana, when processed, would be $1.14 million.

"We're using conservative numbers," Hafer said. "It can be anywhere from
$1,000 to $2,500."

The plants are started in potting soil in a net material and cultivated,
Hafer said. Speaking of the site where the 1,485 plants were found, Hafer
said, "The pilot said that was the largest single plot he's seen in the state."

The plants seized last week were a record volume for the area, he added.
Illicit pot growers sometimes try to camouflage the plants by interspersing
them with corn. At other places the marijuana is planted in small patches.

Operation HEMP, an acronym for Help Eliminate Marijuana Plants, is a
cooperative statewide effort. Sheriff's Sgt. Dan Jewell coordinated last
week's work, Hafer said.