HUNTERS ASKED TO HELP FIND POT

Vermont State Police are enlisting hunters in their search for
marijuana crops.

This year police are asking hunters to report any marijuana plots they
may see while walking through the woods.

Marijuana plants are dead at this time of year, but knowing where the
dead plots are is still helpful, said Senior Trooper Jason Rogers, the
Marijuana Eradication Team officer for the State Police barracks in
Bradford.

"Now we know where it is for the next year," he said.

Growers often return to their same plot in the spring or plant a new
one close by, Rogers said. Hunters often travel the same remote tracts
of land that attract pot growers.

This is the first year police are formally asking hunters for help,
Rogers said. Police issued a similar request last spring to hikers.

That resulted in an increase in tips, which led to the discovery of
plants, but no arrests were made.

Police are advising hunters to look for plots in odd or out-of-the-way
places; plots in open areas hidden by underbrush or surrounded by
chicken wire; plant stalks with leaves and buds removed; and plants
near an established trail.

Hunters should report any potential marijuana plots to their local
State Police.