POT BUST IS BIGGEST IN COUNTY HISTORY

Plants Valued At About $6 Million Found In Hills NE Of Kittitas

Local law enforcement agencies combined efforts Wednesday morning to
conduct the biggest marijuana bust in Kittitas County history.

About 20 officers raided five known marijuana grows within several
hundred feet of each other outside of Kittitas, north of Vantage
Highway six miles past a paved roadway in the Coleman Canyon area.

The grow operation was tied to a larger-scale investigation with
Grant County and the Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team.

"It's very satisfying to be able to take that much product off the
market and to get these people arrested," Kittitas County Sheriff
Gene Dana said.

Dana said the 4,263 plants seized in the operation are estimated at
more than $6 million. However, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency said
depending on the quality of the plants, they could be worth double that amount.

The Kittitas County Special Response Team swept the area at about 7
a.m., checking for suspects before sending in the harvest team at 9 a.m.

The harvest team used a DEA helicopter to haul the plants out of the
area due to rugged terrain.

"This is the biggest grow that I can remember for Kittitas County,"
Dana said in a press release. "Thanks to the availability of the DEA
helicopter, it only took a few hours to eradicate the grow."

Kittitas County had a drug bust a few years ago that took down a $3
million operation, but nothing to the scale of Wednesday's harvest.

The Sheriff's Office first learned of the Coleman Canyon grows
several months ago when Department of Wildlife agent Mike Sprecher
investigated what he believed was a vehicle involved in illegal
fishing in the area, Dana said.

Officials determined the suspects were members of the Eastern
Washington marijuana ring and Sprecher's observations led to further
investigation and surveillance of the area.

The grows are part of an Eastern Washington ring of marijuana
operations that was broken by 12 arrests in Grant County, according to Dana.

Yakima County deputies found six marijuana plants, nine plants
hanging and drying and 3 1/2 pounds of marijuana ready to be packaged
in a home in Sunnyside, according to a press release. Cash and two
vehicle connected with the drug operation were found as well. No
arrests were made as no one was home when the raid was conducted.

In the Mattawa area, Grant County deputies discovered several pounds
of packaged marijuana, two pounds of cocaine valued at $20,000, one
pound of methamphetamines and over $135,000 in cash in five residence searches.

Harvesting teams confiscated more than 2,500 marijuana plants from in
the lower Crab Creek Area east of Beverly.

In Kittitas County, KCSO has known about the grows north of Kittitas
since shortly after Sprecher's observation and has been monitoring
the area for months.

Deputies from KCSO's special response team are trained in camouflage
to investigate under similar circumstances and have been taking
pictures of the operation to get a feel for the players involved,
according to Dana.

"Pulling the crop is one thing, catching the bad guys is another," he
said. "We want to make sure they don't do it again."

The grow operation had an elaborate watering system composed of PVC
pipe stretched for half a mile. Dana said it's not unusual in similar
instances for growers to haul in miles of pipe to stretch it.

The growers had a gas-powered pump to increase the water pressure.
They would open different valves and turn on different sprinkler
heads to get water to their plants.

"It takes a lot of work to haul that pipe in there, stretch it out
and set it up," Dana said.

Although the bust comes as a huge success for local law enforcement,
Dana believes Kittitas County could see continued marijuana activity.

"Because (law enforcement agencies) have made so many arrests in
these other counties, (criminals) are looking for remote areas to
grow their stuff," he said.

KSCO encourages hikers and outdoor enthusiasts in remote areas of
Kittitas County to be on the lookout for signs of illegal activity,
and to be careful as well.

"Hunters and hikers traveling in the remote areas of our county
should be aware of possible marijuana growing operations and the
dangers they may pose such as booby traps or armed individuals who
have a lot invested in their crop," Dana said in a press release.