“We’ve seen people take over homes and warehouses to cultivate marijuana. People probably wouldn’t know the difference; it looks like a residential house. This is a very, very high level of sophisticated organized networks. It’s dangerous in the sense that it’s really a threat. These operations are worth a lot of money.They will do what’s necessary to protect their assets.”
Siyamak sits down with David Welch, who serves as the Special Counsel for Narcotic Enforcement to combat illegal cannabis grows in cities across LA County, and also El Monte Police Chief Jake Fisher, who will tell us how illegal grows operate and how they impact communities through increased crime, pollution, and safety hazards.
“The County of Los Angeles is overwhelmed. We’ve seen situations where we have people that are undocumented who seem like they’re forced to work in these homes. We’ve seen a lot of involvement of foreign nationals, individuals that are tied to transnational criminal organizations. The victims are not only the people that are being trafficked but also sometimes the people that own the property and are being lied to and used to facilitate this illegal activity.”
0:00 Intro
1:48 Illegal Marijuana Grows in Residential Areas
3:40 Are Illegal Grows Using Human Trafficking Victims?
7:30 The Telltale Signs Next Door
10:19 Caught in the Act but Set Free
15:28 How Big Are Illegal Grow Operations?
18:25 Cities Lacking Resources to Identify Grows
19:07 Local Gangs Providing “Protection”
20:45 Prop 64 and illegal grows
23:30 Following the Money Trail
27:33 CA Marijuana Is Built Different
30:47 Impact on the Legal Cannabis Industry
31:58 Illegal Sites’ Network of Operations
33:36 When Illegal Grows Are Discovered
34:35 Risks to communities
36:15 Stricter Law and Punishments Are Needed
37:12 Property Owners Are Often Misled
42:02 Did the “Legalization” Backfire?
#losangeles #elmonte #lawenforcement #publicsafety
*Views expressed in this video/article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of California Insider.
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