The Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office arrested three Chinese adult males and seized 970 marijuana plants from an illegal commercial-scale cannabis operation Saturday morning following a report of a “person being held against their will.”
An investigation by KCSO deputies uncovered the unlicensed drug cultivation operation and arrested in the arrest of Changgeng Chen, a 36-year-old male, Bing Xu, a 41-year-old male, and Aiqin Chen, a 43-year-old female.
The KCSO did not say whether Chen, Xu, and Chen were lawful Maine residents or U.S. citizens.
None of the arrested individuals were listed on the Kennebec County jails list of current inmates as of Tuesday.
WGME Reporter Dan Lampariello was the first to report on the arrests.
The property in China where the arrest occurred was purchased in October by Yuzhen Chen, 41, of Kent, Washington.
This story will be updated.
More from the Maine Wire’s TRIAD WEED Series
- How Chinese Marijuana Grows Took Over Rural Maine
- State Law Enforcement, Feds Struggle to Clamp Down on Illegal Chinese Drug Operations in Maine
- Maine Legislature Will Consider Proposal to Fight Chinese-owned Marijuana Operations
- Collins, Golden Renew Call for DOJ Action Against Illicit Chinese Marijuana Grows Following Maine Wire Report
