MARIJUANA PLANTS FOUND AND BURNED

BELCHERTOWN - Belchertown police have uprooted and destroyed marijuana
plants with an estimated street value of $32,000 to $35,000 over the
last two months.

Flying in Army National Guard helicopters, Belchertown Detective Kevin
G. Truehart and Officer James C. Daniels spotted from the skies about
25 marijuana plants in eight outdoor locales.

Most of the plants were found near swamps and far from homes. While
some of the pot plants officials saw from the sky were nearly dead or
had already been harvested, many had been fertilized and were thriving.

"They were all high quality, and definitely well taken care of,"
Daniels said. "They were obviously spots someone hiked to and
cultivated on their own."

Since police had no way to determine to whom the plants belonged, no
arrests were made. But now that police know where the growing areas
are, they can monitor them next year, Daniels said.

The plants were burned and buried, he said.

The Army National Guard Reconnaissance and Interdiction Detachment
from Westfield's Barnes Air National Guard Base provided helicopters
and pilots for the Belchertown sweeps.

"Our ground and air reconnaissance, and assets and skills in finding
things in open areas, are definitely things we can bring to the table
in helping local law enforcement agencies," said Capt. Winfield S.
Danielson, public affairs officer for the Massachusetts National Guard.

The detachment flew for 669 hours in support of counter-drug missions
during fiscal year 2004, and helped seize more than $200 million in
illegal materials, he said.