Authorities seize 5,000 marijuana plants on county line

Grow is second large crop found in last two weeks

COLUMBIA BASIN — Officers with the Inter Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team seized and destroyed approximately 5,000 marijuana plants Wednesday, after raiding a pot growing operation just across the Franklin County line.

With the help of a Drug Enforcement Administration helicopter, a Grant County spotter located the grow last week. Authorities from several law enforcement agencies spent about six hours at the site of the growing operation Wednesday to remove and destroy the plants. The plants, with a street value of $7.5 million, were found planted around a field of Russian olive trees.

This was the second large grow found by Grant County officials in as many weeks. Approximately 4,000 plants were seized and destroyed from a field of Russian olive trees near Saddle Mountain Lake Aug. 23. The Grant County Sheriff's Office said this latest grow was located above the white bluffs area near the Columbia River and two miles south of the Grant and Franklin County line.

Investigators also found several tents and huts around the growing operation, along with a large amount of food and camping supplies and ammunition but no firearms. No suspects were found in the raid, the GCSO said.

"Most of these plants that are being found (are) on state and federal ground," GCSO Chief Deputy John Turley said Friday of the grows found so far this year.

This brings the total to about 16,000 plants seized in and around Grant County this year. DEA officials have been assisting the GCSO through grant funding for the searches. The GCSO said the DEA will be working in the area for another 10 days.

INET officers were assisted by officers with the DEA, Franklin County Sheriff's Office, Tri-City Metro Drug Task Force, Grant County Fire District No. 5, and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.