Pot garden uprooted

A raid on an illegal pot garden east of Red Bluff on Wednesday and the arrest of seven suspects was the culmination of a two-year, multi-state investigation into the activities of a Mexican drug trafficking organization.

Law enforcement agents entered the garden, located at Battle Creek east of Paynes Creek, at 9 p.m. and were met with gunfire as suspects tried to flee the garden, said the Tehama County Sheriff's office.

A sheriff's deputy returned fire, but no one was injured in the incident.

A suspect, Martin Garcia-Chavez, 46, of Long Beach, was arrested at the garden. He was in possession of a 9mm handgun, said the sheriff's office. Garcia has been booked into the Tehama County Jail on suspicion of cultivation of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale, and being armed during the commission of a felony. Bail was set at $25,000.

On Thursday, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies were

in the garden eradicating 11,444 mature plants.

"Harvested and sold on the street the plants would have been worth millions of dollars," said Tehama County Sheriff Clay Parker

He said as law enforcement was re-entering the garden on Friday morning, a vehicle with numerous passengers was seen in the area. The vehicle's description was sent out to law enforcement and it was apprehended as it was crossing the stateline into Nevada on U.S. Route 395 later that morning.

"Six suspects were arrested in relation to the Battle Creek garden," Parker said. "This makes 28 arrests for this two-year drug trafficking investigation."

Because the garden was located on Bureau of Land Management property, the suspects could be facing federal charges.

Law enforcement officials actually believe the organization, which has a U.S. base of operation in Reno, Nev., has been active in Tehama County for three years and is responsible for growing more than 100,000 marijuana plants.

Robert McLaughlin, Department of Justice-Campaign Against Marijuana Planting special agent supervisor, said, "The damage to the environment created by these illegal marijuana gardens is terrible. Not only is there a financial cost to eradicate the gardens and apprehend suspects, but also environmental costs that often can't be reclaimed."

He said the growers use toxic chemicals, destructive irrigation practices, and leave trash all over the growing sites.

"One of the latest problems is a rodent poison being brought in from Mexico that is more toxic than anything available in the U.S.," McLaughlin said. "The poison is just left out and is killing many more animals than just rodents."

As many as five other marijuana gardens raided by the sheriff's office and federal land management in eastern Tehama County could be linked to the Reno drug trafficking organization.

Parker said the organization may be involved in numerous illegal drug operations.

The investigation has been conducted by the Tehama County Sheriff's Office, BLM, Department of Fish and Game, U.S. Forest Service, Drug Enforcement Agency, Department of Justice, Immigrant and Customs Enforcement, and Nevada Department of Public Safety, Parole and Probation.