SO CAL RAID PRODUCES MORE THAN 30,000 MARIJUANA PLANTS

TEMECULA, Calif.- Authorities found more than 30,000 marijuana plants worth
about $170 million at 17 locations in the hills west of here.

The seven-day raid by the Riverside County Sheriff's marijuana eradication
team that ended Tuesday is one of Southern California's biggest crop
seizures in recent years, federal investigators said.

Last year, team members destroyed 117,000 plants in Riverside and San
Bernardino counties, a popular spot for marijuana growers because of good
conditions.

"There is a free flow of nutrient-fed water and easy places to hide
plants," said sheriff's Sgt. Andrew Nielson. "For a couple of thousand
dollars, some people are making millions."

Deputies made only one arrest this week. A transient from Mexico, Vianey
Medrano, 31 watched over 4,600 plants, authorities said.

Investigators have been watching the area overlooking Temecula. Most of the
marijuana farms were difficult to access. Some had small camps set up,
complete with stoves, dug-out bathrooms and beds.

Deputies found the farms by staking out the same spots they found in last
year's sweep. Each plant can produce a pound of marijuana, which has a
street value of about $5,500, authorities said.

The plants, now in Palm Springs, will be buried with chemicals that
decompose the marijuana.