Somerset County Sheriff Dale Lancaster put yet another illegal Chinese-run marijuana growing operation out of commission Monday morning on the Foss Road in Madison, his office said in a press release.
“During the search, 449 live mature marijuana plants, 52 pounds of processed marijuana, harvested marijuana plants, and illicit drug related articles were located and seized,” Sheriff Lancaster said in a press release.
“A dog at the residence was turned over to the Madison Animal Welfare Officials, as the dog was not properly cared for,” Lancaster said.
A source in Madison confirmed that the property that was raided was at 22 Foss Road. Like other recently busted sites in Corinna and Passadumkeag, the property was owned by a corporate entity, rather than an individual: 22 Foss Inc.
According to Somerset County records, 22 Foss Inc. was registered in Kings County New York with an address at 633 53rd Street in Brooklyn.
According to New York corporate records, director of the company is Qing Chan Zhu, 41, of Brooklyn, and they formed the company in in Sept. 2020.
Zhu could not immediately be reached for comment.
The search warrant was executed by Sheriff’s Office Detectives and Deputies, along with Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Homeland Security Investigations, Border Patrol, and the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration.
The Somerset/Kennebec County District Attorney’s Office, the United States Attorney’s Office and the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy assisted with the investigation.
Notably, the Maine State Police and Maine Drug Enforcement Agency were not mentioned as partners in the enforcement action.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) and Maine Dept. of Public Safety Commissioner Michael Sauschuck have yet to acknowledge the vast criminal conspiracy that has developed in Maine since 2020.
Monday’s raid on the Foss Road is the second search warrant executed in the past four days in the Madison involving suspected illegal marijuana cultivation sites, with over 1,900 live plants and over 60 pounds of processed marijuana being seized, Lancaster said.
According to the Maine Wire’s investigation of Chinese-run marijuana sites in Maine, there remain sites in Madison on Lakewood Drive, Golf Course Road, and Middle Street.
Over the past month, the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Division has executed six search warrants in the towns of Cornville, Norridgewock, Mercer, and Madison, and arrested four people in total on suspected operation of illegal marijuana cultivation sties. To date, the Sheriff’s Office has seized over 6,700 live marijuana plants and over 180 pounds of processed marijuana.
TRIAD WEED
- At Rural Maine Marijuana Grow, Cops Find Asian Passports, Plane Tickets from China, and Stolen Electricity
- Sheriffs Raid Multiple Triad Weed Properties Throughout Central, Northern Maine – Guilford, Mercer, Corinna & Sangerville
- Illegal Marijuana Vexes Northern Maine Town Officials as Out-of-State Criminals Prosper
- Maine Sheriff Raids 8th Illegal Chinese-Owned Marijuana Grow in 8 Months
- Valentine’s Day Bust Breaks Heart of New York Man Illegally Growing 1,310 Pot Plants in Norridgewock, Maine
- Maine State Police Bust Cannabis Grow Ops in Belgrade, Seize 2,300 Plants
- Another One: Turner Firefighters Discover Suspected Illegal Chinese Marijuana Grow Near Bear Pond Variety
- No Arrests as Illicit Chinese Marijuana Grow in Norridgewock Busted
- Fifteen Raids Seize Nearly 20k Black Market Cannabis Plants from Chinese-Controlled Sites in Maine
- Maine Law Enforcement Raids Machias Marijuana Grow, Arrests Three Suspected Non-Citizens
- Maine Sheriff Arrests Two More New Yorkers Linked to Illegal Marijuana Operation in Whitefield
- Two Weeks After $1M Western Maine Marijuana Raid, Wilton Still Abuzz With Illicit Drug Activity
- Chinese Nationals Caught Illegally Entering U.S. Reached Record High in December…
- U.S. Border Agents Arrest Three Chinese “Asylum Seekers” with 23 Fake IDs…
