The Somerset County Sheriff’s Department executed on Thursday morning its 19th search warrant of the year as part of an ongoing investigation into the sprawling network of drug trafficking sites run by Asian Transnational Criminal Organizations.
According to Sheriff Dale Lancaster, the enforcement action, which occurred at a residence in Solon, resulted in the seizure of a large amount of illegally cultivated cannabis, but no arrests.
The Maine Wire has previously visited the property, at 21 North Main St., and observed the tell-tale signs of a marijuana cultivation operation, including the obvious smell of marijuana, blacked-out windows, and recent electrical upgrades.
According to property records, the current owner of the property is Shelly W. Leung, 26, of Brooklyn, who acquired the house in June 2021 from Hua Kai Yu and Shu Fen Lin.
Leung, Yu, and Lin all listed the same East 14th Street address in Brooklyn on the warranty deed.
Somerset Registry of Deeds records indicate that Leung also co-owns two other properties in Anson with Zhen Bi Xu, also of Brooklyn.
No one was present at the property at the time of the raid.
The warrant was executed by a team comprising five Sheriff’s Office Criminal Division Detectives, three Sheriff’s Office Patrol Deputies, three Waterville Police Department Detectives, and two Investigators from the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy.
The Somerset County District Attorney’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office provided assistance in the investigation, according to Lancaster.
As with the vast majority of law enforcement actions targeting transnational organized criminal groups engaging in illegal marijuana cultivation this year, the Maine State Police were not listed among the participating agencies.
Authorities seized 1,142 marijuana plants, over 100 pounds of processed marijuana, and various illicit drug-related items from the residence and a detached garage.
Health and safety concerns prompted the involvement of the Solon Code Enforcement Officer, who was called to the scene during the execution of the search warrant.
Criminal charges are pending against those responsible for the illegal marijuana cultivation and drug trafficking activities discovered at the property, the Sheriff said.
This operation marks the 19th drug search warrant executed by the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Division since mid-January 2024, targeting illegal marijuana cultivation and drug trafficking across multiple towns.
The Somerset Sheriff’s office has previously executed search warrants on properties in Cornville, Canaan, Skowhegan, Norridgewock, Mercer, Madison, Solon, Harmony, Ripley, and St. Albans.
These operations have resulted in 11 arrests and the seizure of over 23,000 marijuana plants, more than 600 pounds of processed marijuana, $48,000 in suspected illegal drug proceeds, and five motor vehicles.
Federal asset forfeiture proceedings have been initiated by the United States Attorney’s Office against a property in Cornville, where three arrests were made in January 2024.
Owned by Leung, Lu, and Lin?? Shocking!
Congrats to the persistence of the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department and The Maine Wire! Those of us paying attention are grateful.
19 down and only 200 plus to go.Probably financed by the same bank in NY. The feds aren’t interested as they are too busy looking for all those white supremacists and Trump voters.
did mills help with the sale? Probably.
Oldenoughtoknowbetter all banks are under the supervision of the Federal Reserve.
I guess King and Sue have a war to fight!