$30 T0 $80 MILLION IN POT

Drug Task Force Harvests 75,000 to 80,000 Marijuana
Plants

CANTON - Cooperation between federal, state and local law enforcement
agencies helped seize between 75,000 and 80,000 marijuana plants worth
between $30 million and $80 million in northern St. Lawrence County on
Wednesday.

The unprocessed plants were all found within a one-mile radius of each
other, according to St. Lawrence County sheriff Gary Jarvis.

One investigator said the plants are worth anywhere between $400 and
$1,000 a plant, and said it was one of the largest single seizures of
marijuana he has seen.

No charges have been files to date in connection with the seizer of
the plants, and the sheriff said their investigation is continuing.

Investigators say the marijuana was found before the fall harvest
season, and the sheriff added that they have been getting complains
from residents about marijuana growing in areas.

He said the cooperation between law enforcement personnel on all
levels helped in the success of the seizure. While no arrests have
been made yet, the sheriff said the cooperation between the various
agencies, and a seizure this large, shows how serious they are about
fighting drugs.

"We are going to catch you and prosecute you," Jarvis
said.

The St. Lawrence County Drug Task Force participated along with the
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the state Department of
Environmental Conservation, the New York State Police and local police
agencies from Massena, Potsdam and Ogdensburg, according to the sheriff.

Units from the National Guard also assisted by carrying six truckloads
of the marijuana plants to a disposal site where the marijuana was
burned.