Pinch
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Deputy's nose leads to pot plants in house
Water, light provided for marijuana
Josh Kelley
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 10, 2005 12:00 AM
Phoenix, Arizona--A huge marijuana garden of 212 plants nurtured by an intricate irrigation and lighting system worth tens of thousands of dollars was uncovered inside a West Valley rental house Saturday.
No one was living in the house, which has an out-of-state owner, authorities said.
The Maricopa County Neighborhood Narcotics Team found a system of hoses running from faucets to 50-gallon drums that fed a timed irrigation system, said Sheriff's Office Sgt. Travis Anglin.
Pliable, reflective-material covered walls, and filtration devices were attached to air ducts in an effort to prevent strong smells from seeping out.
But the air was not filtered well enough to keep a deputy from detecting "an overwhelming odor of marijuana" while on an unrelated call in the neighborhood earlier in the week, Anglin said.
"We've just never seen a more elaborate setup in a house," he said. "It's a completely self-sufficient system."
The plants were grown in bedrooms on the second story of the house in the 12500 block of West Medlock Drive north of Camelback Road in an area east of Litchfield Park, Anglin said.
The owner told the Sheriff's Office he was renting out the house and was unaware of the illicit vegetation thriving on his property, Anglin said.
According to the latest data available on the Maricopa County Assessor's Office Web site, the house was purchased in June 2003 for $150,815, and the owner lives in San Francisco.
No one was inside when Sheriff's Office personnel entered the house.
The owner and people in neighboring houses are working with investigators to track down whoever is responsible for raising the marijuana, he said.
Plants were placed in bedrooms according to maturity and were separated by plastic dividers, apparently to control the climate.
Plants ranged in size from seedlings to budding marijuana plants that were 4 feet tall and could have produced $10,000 each in income, Anglin said.
With the lighting and water systems controlled by timers, "you can just come every few weeks and take what you need," Anglin said.
Source: The Arizona Republic
Copyrught: Copyright 2005 AZCentral.com
Contact: Josh Kelly/The Arizona Republic
Website: azcentral.com
Water, light provided for marijuana
Josh Kelley
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 10, 2005 12:00 AM
Phoenix, Arizona--A huge marijuana garden of 212 plants nurtured by an intricate irrigation and lighting system worth tens of thousands of dollars was uncovered inside a West Valley rental house Saturday.
No one was living in the house, which has an out-of-state owner, authorities said.
The Maricopa County Neighborhood Narcotics Team found a system of hoses running from faucets to 50-gallon drums that fed a timed irrigation system, said Sheriff's Office Sgt. Travis Anglin.
Pliable, reflective-material covered walls, and filtration devices were attached to air ducts in an effort to prevent strong smells from seeping out.
But the air was not filtered well enough to keep a deputy from detecting "an overwhelming odor of marijuana" while on an unrelated call in the neighborhood earlier in the week, Anglin said.
"We've just never seen a more elaborate setup in a house," he said. "It's a completely self-sufficient system."
The plants were grown in bedrooms on the second story of the house in the 12500 block of West Medlock Drive north of Camelback Road in an area east of Litchfield Park, Anglin said.
The owner told the Sheriff's Office he was renting out the house and was unaware of the illicit vegetation thriving on his property, Anglin said.
According to the latest data available on the Maricopa County Assessor's Office Web site, the house was purchased in June 2003 for $150,815, and the owner lives in San Francisco.
No one was inside when Sheriff's Office personnel entered the house.
The owner and people in neighboring houses are working with investigators to track down whoever is responsible for raising the marijuana, he said.
Plants were placed in bedrooms according to maturity and were separated by plastic dividers, apparently to control the climate.
Plants ranged in size from seedlings to budding marijuana plants that were 4 feet tall and could have produced $10,000 each in income, Anglin said.
With the lighting and water systems controlled by timers, "you can just come every few weeks and take what you need," Anglin said.
Source: The Arizona Republic
Copyrught: Copyright 2005 AZCentral.com
Contact: Josh Kelly/The Arizona Republic
Website: azcentral.com
