Ephrata man faces opium charges

EPHRATA — An Ephrata man was charged in Grant County Superior Court for running the first known poppy seed growing operation to be used for opium in Grant County.

William P. Helfrich, 56, was charged with manufacturing opium and manufacturing marijuana.

He is being held on a $5,000 bond. If convicted, Helfrich could face up to 10 years in prison.

Police received information about someone growing marijuana in Ephrata and served a search warrant. They found a padlocked door in the shop area of the residence. Once they opened the door, they allegedly found 15 marijuana plants, according court records.

The Grant County Sheriff’s Office estimates the value of the plants to be $22,500.

While police were searching the rest of the residence, they reportedly found poppy seed stems in the process of being dried and four 13-gallon trash bags containing poppy seeds, according to the sheriff’s office.

Law enforcement believed it to be the process used to extract opium.

An informant allegedly told police the poppies were grown on the property, according to a court record.

While police searched the property, Helfrich did not talk to police.