SOUTH LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Last week, the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Unit eradicated more than 24,000 marijuana plants found in clandestine grows in the south county.

Lt. Steve Brooks said that on Sept. 22 the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Unit located and eradicated 7,569 mature marijuana plants from a clandestine marijuana cultivation site within the rural mountains of Butts Canyon, near the Napa County line.

Several days prior, a local hunter came across the site and immediately contacted authorities, Brooks said.

During a recon flight in the area, detectives located a second large grow site a few miles from the original reported garden. Brooks said this site was much larger, and was in the process of being harvested.

Detectives located and eradicated a total of 16,971 mature marijuana plants from this site, Brooks said.

Both operations consisted of complex drip irrigations systems which were being concealed within the native vegetation. Brooks said water was being diverted from nearby springs and stored in pits dug out as water reservoirs.

Each operation contained a single person camp, but had evidence of several subjects working to assist with the harvest, Brooks said.

Brooks said a total of 24,540 marijuana plants were located and eradicated during this all-day operation.

Thus far in 2016, the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Unit has located and eradicated a total of 41,883 marijuana plants from several different locations within the Butts Canyon area. The total number of marijuana plants which have been located and eradicated in Lake County this year is 310,000, Brooks said.

Brooks said the Sheriff’s Narcotics Unit will continue its efforts to eradicate narcotics from the communities of Lake County and seize the suspected profits of drug trafficking for asset forfeiture whenever possible.

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