7,200 Marijuana Plants Seized Near San Luis Obispo
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LOS OSOS, Calif. — A raid on a marijuana farm hidden by thick vegetation netted about 7,200 plants Wednesday, some of them 7 feet tall, that had an estimated street value of $21 million, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Department said.
No arrests were immediately made.
Investigators acting on an anonymous tip found the plants in nine “gardens” on a 20-acre site in a mountainous area of this unincorporated community, Sheriff’s Lt. Steve Boltz said.
The plants were three to four weeks from maturity, Boltz said. They were scattered in drip-irrigated plots, concealed from the air by scrub and oaks.
The marijuana farm was not as sophisticated as indoor farms that use grow lights and hydroponics, but it was labor-intensive, Boltz said.
“There was a great deal of brush clearing, tree limbs cleared with chain saws,” Boltz said. “These plants were very well cared for.”
The landowners were not suspected of involvement.
Deputies seized shovels, rakes, hoes and other gardening tools.
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