Multimillion dollar pot operation busted in Atwater
By VICTOR A. PATTON
vpatton@mercedsun-star.com
Two men are in custody after task force agents busted an estimated $47.8 million marijuana operation in Atwater -- the county's largest pot bust reported this year.

The bust, which yielded 47,800 pot plants, happened after agents with the Merced/Mariposa High Intensity Drug Task Force arrived at the 8000 block of Atwater Jordan Road, according to Deputy Tom MacKenzie, Merced County sheriff's spokesman.

After conducting surveillance on the property, agents spoke with suspect Jose Lizarraga, 22, of Delhi. Lizarraga allowed agents to search inside a cinder block building, about 600 square feet in size, next to an eight-acre corn field. MacKenzie said agents found evidence of marijuana cultivation inside the building.


Jose Lizarraga

Juvenal Sanchez

Agents detained Lizarraga and obtained a search warrant for the property. The search revealed drip lines from the irrigation canal, leading into the corn field.

During the investigation, Sgt. Rich Howard spotted a second suspect, 36-year-old Juvenal Sanchez of Salinas, exiting the corn field. Sanchez ran back into the corn field after seeing Howard and failed to comply with his orders to stop. A pit bull/labrador mix dog then ran out of the field and charged Howard, forcing him the fatally shoot the dog, MacKenzie said.

Sanchez was then taken into custody.

MacKenzie said a total of 25 officers from Merced County Sheriff's Department, Atwater Police Department, Department of Justice, Merced Mutli-Agency Narcotics Task Force and court security helped clean up all the plants, which took about eight hours.

The marijuana was planted parallel with the corn, in between the individual stalks, so it couldn't be seen from the air, MacKenzie said. The plants were burned Sunday, ranging from small starter plants a few inches tall to plants that were several feet tall, with an average street value of $1,000 a plant when harvested at maturity

Inside the building, agents found evidence of a makeshift camp where workers would stay while tending the garden. The suspects told investigators the corn was "already there" when they planted the marijuana. The duo also claimed they were leasing the property from the owner, who is out of town.

Both men are being held at the Merced County Jail without bail. Both men are undocumented immigrants, being held at the jail on a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers.

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