MARIJUANA GARDEN NETS 26,812 PLANTS

A three-day eradication effort into Solano's Blue Ridge Mountains this
week yielded a mass of mature marijuana plants worth more than $268
million, bringing the year-to-date total for sheriff's officials to
nearly $558 million.

The street value estimations are based on calculations recommended by
the Drug Enforcement Administration. Previously valued at about $5,000
per plant, the figures have since doubled.

From Monday through Wednesday, the California Multijurisdictional
Methamphetamine Enforcement Team, together with correctional officers
and the aid of a California Highway Patrol air crew, infiltrated the
Blue Ridge area and located four deeply-hidden marijuana gardens. Also
found, was a small campsite with items left behind by the illegal
growers and garden tenders, believed to be Mexican nationals who fled
the scene before deputies arrived.

A total of 26,812 mature marijuana plants were eradicated from the
area, officials said.

The plants, in 14 loads, were airlifted out over a two-day period.
They were subsequently taken to an undisclosed location and destroyed.

Since April, the Sheriff's Office has eradicated a total of 55,798
plants during a series of operations throughout rural Solano County.

The street value of the plants was estimated at $557,987,000, a record
for the Sheriff's Office.