HOME INVASION LINKED TO POT

Bolted Baseball Bat Used in Alleged Robbery Attempt

A 37-year-old man was seriously injured when two men allegedly broke
into a house outside Cedar Ridge late Monday night and attacked two
other men with a wooden baseball bat that had long metal bolts driven
into the end.

The home invasion on the 11000 block of Rohaje Lane may have been an
attempted robbery of marijuana, though investigators have not yet
established a motive, Nevada County sheriff's Lt. Bill Evans said.
Police found about 22 pot plants at the house, he said.

Marvin Buckingham, 37, was transported by helicopter to Sutter
Roseville Medical Center with serious injuries after he was struck in
the head with the altered baseball bat, Evans said. The mace broke
during the fight, he said.

Buckingham remained in serious condition Tuesday afternoon, hospital
spokeswoman Robin Montgomery said.

The other occupant, Michael Stein, 47, had an abrasion on his face
and was not taken to the hospital, Evans said.

"If you're minding your own business, sitting at home manicuring your
pot plants, you might want to lock your door," Nevada County
sheriff's Capt. Ron Smith said. "This is the risk you take."

Violent marijuana robberies are happening all over California this
harvest season, said Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent
Gordon Taylor in Sacramento.

"The use is bad enough," he said, "but all the activity associated
with marijuana cultivation creates a dangerous environment."

In the incident outside Cedar Ridge, the suspects broke into the home
shortly before midnight, according to sheriff's logs. They did not
knock or announce themselves, Evans said, but barged in and started
swinging the mace.

After a brief struggle in the living room, one of the victims yelled
that he had a gun, authorities said.

"That was quick thinking on his part," Smith said.

Both suspects got scared and ran without taking any marijuana, Evans
said. The victim did not actually have a gun, he said.

One of the victims called 911 at 11:54 p.m. and told a dispatcher the
attackers were wearing jeans and flannel shirts and were in a white
truck. The suspects were not wearing masks, Evans said.

Sheriff's deputies responded and stopped a white Ford truck with two
male occupants on Rattlesnake Road at Dog Bar Road at 12:19 a.m.

Investigators drove Stein by the vehicle to identify the men, but he
said he did not recognize them, Evans said.

Deputies arrested the men, Mike Console, 23, and Timothy Connor, 47,
on suspicion of transporting a controlled substance for sale.
Marijuana and heroin were found in the truck, Evans said.

Console was booked into jail without bail because he is in violation
of his probation, according to jail staff.

Connor's bail was set at $35,000, jail staff reported.

Console has been arrested for drug possession in the past, Evans said.

Six marijuana plants were located outside of the home, and 16 smaller
plants were inside along with "a bunch" drying inside, Evans said.

The victims will not be charged with marijuana cultivation, because
three doctor's recommendations of medical marijuana were located at
the residence, Evans said.

Investigators do not want to attribute the invasion solely to
attempted marijuana theft, Evans said, because there may be more to the story.

"This one's a little strange," Evans said. "I don't think we know the
whole story."

One of the victims told police that the owner of the home - who was
not present at the time of the attack - was recently threatened for
an unknown reason, he said.

"Someone said they were going to break (the homeowner's) legs," Evans said.

Sheriff's investigators say the recent string of similar attempted
robberies are not linked, Smith said. They suspect different
attackers are involved in each incident, while the home invasions are
not random, but targeted, perhaps by people who know the victims.

"This is high risk, high gain to these (intruders)," Smith said.
"They're probably going to let you do all the work, then take (the
marijuana) after you pick off all the buds."

People who do not cultivate marijuana shouldn't worry about getting
targeted by these types of violent intruders, Smith said.

"It's not your regular citizens who are getting their doors kicked
in," Smith said. "It's just the guys involved in marijuana enterprise."