16 Nevada County Illegal Cannabis Operations Eradicated

NEVADA COUNTY — The Special Investigation Unit of the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday that, in cooperation with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), officers had executed search warrants at 16 suspected illegal cannabis operations within the county between July and August. Nine of the searched properties were in Grass Valley, four in Nevada City, one in Rough and Ready, one in Penn Valley, and one in North San Juan. The warrants resulted in the eradication of 17,345 cannabis plants and 917.7 pounds of processed cannabis.

The searches also resulted in the seizure of two firearms, the arrest of two individuals, and the issuance of citations to two others. Charges included illegal cannabis cultivation, Water Code and Fish and Game Code violations, and possession of illegal pesticides. The Sheriff’s Office says that on one property, it found “illegal and highly toxic Chinese pesticides.”

Assisting in the execution of the search warrants were California’s Eradication and Prevention of Illicit Cannabis Task Force, the National Guard, Nevada County’s Cannabis Compliance division, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, the California Environmental Protection Agency, and the Nevada County District Attorney’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office encourages anyone with information on illegal grow activity to contact the office, CDFW, or Nevada County. Anonymous tips can be submitted to https://www.nevadacountyca.gov/192/Sheriffs-Crime-Tip-Form.