LAKE COUNTY — In a Thursday public information release, Captain James Bauman, public information officer stated that on Tuesday sheriff”s detectives received information from the Santa Rosa Police Department that a missing person reported in their jurisdiction may have been shot and killed in an illegal marijuana grow in Lake County. Later that morning and based on the information provided by the Santa Rosa Police Department, sheriff”s detectives located a very large scale marijuana growing operation in the area of Highway 175, south of Socrates Mine Road.
When detectives entered the marijuana grow, they confronted several suspects that were believed to be armed and who immediately ran into the woods. Due to the size, complexity, and terrain of the search area, the sheriff”s SWAT team was summoned for a specialized search, air support was requested from the California Highway Patrol, and the Sheriff”s Mobile Incident Command Post was deployed to the area.
The investigation and search for suspects in the immediate area extended into Tuesday night and the SWAT team remained inserted in the grow through the following day. During the night in which there was little to no visibility, SWAT members reported hearing subjects trying to re-enter the illegal grow but attempts to contain those subjects were unsuccessful.
The following day at about 7:30 a.m., Sheriff”s Incident Command received a report that two male Hispanic subjects were seen running down Highway 175 from the area and acting suspiciously.
A sheriff”s patrol unit in the area responded and both were detained. A loaded 9 mm handgun, which one of the subjects discarded upon contact, was recovered near the roadway and both were arrested for suspicion of cultivating marijuana and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
An investigation into the illegal grow continued throughout Wednesday while sheriff”s Detectives interviewed the two suspects about the operation and the alleged homicide. Evidence of long term occupation by an unknown number of suspects was located in several grow sites in the area and several more firearms were recovered.
Interviews with the two arrestees confirmed not only their connection to the marijuana grow, but also to the homicide and one of them agreed to lead detectives to the area where the homicide victim was located.
In the late afternoon on Wednesday, detectives were able to locate a grave site in one of the marijuana grows between the Bear Creek Canyon power plant access road and Socrates Mine Road. There, the partially decomposed body of a male adult was recovered along with a sawed-off shotgun.
Investigation of the illegal operation continued through Wednesday. The State Department of Justice CAMP Program provided both personnel and air support to assist the Sheriff”s Department with the eradication of nearly 20,000 marijuana plants, and the movement of personnel and equipment in and out of the homicide scene.
Eradication of the marijuana operation concluded late Wednesday but the processing of the homicide scene continued into Thursday. The apparent homicide victim recovered from the operation has yet to be positively identified and any connection to the missing person case out of Santa Rosa has yet to be confirmed. Both the illegal marijuana operation and the suspected homicide were committed by means of trespassing on privately owned lands, with no connection to the property owner or owners. The investigation is on-going and no further information is available at this time.
