UPDATE: Here’s the press release.
A two-page “joint” press release detailing the booty seized in Operation Southern Sweep was set for release at — no kidding — 4:20pm today.
Nevertheless, it hit fax machines just after noon and KHUM dj Mike Dronkers read it over the airwaves.
10,000 plants, $160,000 in cash and numerous weapons — including fully automatic — were seized by investigators.
The list of agencies involved in the busts is crazy long. Law enforcement in Humboldt, Mendocino, San Jose, Redding, Tehama County and others played in a role in the lead-up to yesterday’s raids.
More details at the times-standard.com.
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June 25, 2008 at 1:16 pm
“Beginning in early 2006, members of BNE’s Redding regional office initiated an investigation into a California-based organization which had purchased a large parcel of mountainous land in the southern Humboldt and northern Mendocino counties, and was suspected of growing large amounts of marijuana on the land and selling it for profit. Due to the large scale and scope of the investigation, BNE invited the FBI to participate.” sounds like the Schmook Ranch . . . could it be?
June 25, 2008 at 1:31 pm
I wish they would put this type of energy into stomping out METH.
June 25, 2008 at 1:45 pm
That would be great if the meth issue got some attention.
Sounds like this whole event has been in the planning process for over two years.
June 25, 2008 at 1:51 pm
4:20…isn’t that cute.
I gotta say thanks to them for doing it right. I know a lot of us were worried they would be after the med user…looks like they deserve a little credit here for not doing that.
Thank you, Federal Agents for not bringing the nightmare we feared and thank you, too, for cleaning up in the right places.
Never thought I’d ever say that.
June 25, 2008 at 1:53 pm
160k … what a fucking waste of time. Hey yuppie fbi douche, go back to palo alto and san jose you freakin’ losers. You are a total waste of tax dollars. Big “L” to my forward. You ain’t got no alibi, LOSERS!
June 25, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Its a little too early to be expressing gratitude. This isn’t over yet.
June 25, 2008 at 1:56 pm
thanks for leaving my trailor full of meth alone. Were having a big ol’ tweeker party tonight. Grilled bolgna an’ cheese for every scumbag around. For a quarter extra I got headcheese samy’s. Roll on with your bad selves tweek is free today.
June 25, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Let’s party brotha and stay up till next week sometime. Marijuana is too mellow for me.
June 25, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Is it a BYON party?
June 25, 2008 at 2:14 pm
I call bullshit on the 10,000 plants. Where are they FBI? If you had them you would be taking pictures and releasing them to the media! Where are you going to dispose of them? You can’t burn them right now, so what are you going to do? I smell fakery.
June 25, 2008 at 2:54 pm
I like the rolling marque on the ER web site. First is the story of the help needed on the fires and lack of resources. then it scrolls to the Big Sohum Fedorama Pot Extravaganza, and all the resources listed in the story to eradicate the Evil Weed.
Now if we could just hook the two together, I would feel that my tax dollars are being better spent.
I wonder if they did it on purpose??
June 25, 2008 at 3:02 pm
hey meth head, what will you do when all your teeth fall out???
June 25, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Herald I dig your sense of humor man! …..”joint” press release was almost as good as the release happening planned by the DEA at 4:20, priceless!
June 25, 2008 at 3:10 pm
I want pictures!! If this is true, shouldn’t there be some pictures of agents with the mountains of seized pot.
June 25, 2008 at 3:17 pm
FBI/FDA have untold resources available to them. from endless files on peeps to sophisticated surveillance, they are organizations we hardly know and can hardly know without conjecture or presumptions. they are also masters of disinformation, capable of swaying public opinion or deflecting the truth in any situation.
the cache of evidence listed already, “10,000 plants, $160,000 in cash and numerous weapons — including fully automatic” hardly seems worth the 450 federal agents involved.
there is something else going on here, like possibly a connection to mex mafia or herion or something else entirely that so far has not been uncovered.
public sentiment regarding medical M is as strong as its ever been which means that the feds are on to something larger than a mere 10,000 plants and $160K.
but what is it?
June 25, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Don’t think it was mex mafia, we heard otherwise.
June 25, 2008 at 3:20 pm
4.4 million dollar of OUR TAX dollars spent on this shit, while humboldt trinity and numerous other counties BURN, to all of you that said great job feds, thanks 4 not going after the medical user, FUCK YOU, you punk, you know you sell that shit too, your haters…and did I mention FUCK THE FEDS…fuck all your pompous asses . And most of you people encourging the feds….MOVE…HUMBOLDT IS NOT NOT FOR YOU… man none of you little punks got a qaurter of the balls us real deal humboldt county outlaws have…let humboldt burn though, thats OK….I guess for you fools. All native Humboldt people lets get all these insurgents the fuck outta here….
June 25, 2008 at 3:20 pm
“Mr. Hedlund also agreed to forfeit his right to more than 7000 acres in Humboldt and Trinity counties that Hedlund purchased from the Eel River Saw Mill in the name of Vilica LLC. In addition to forfeiting the Vilica LLC parcels, Hedlund agreed that federal, state, and local law enforcement and code enforcement officials may, at any time, conduct warrantless searches of the more than 5000 acres Hedlund controls throughout Humboldt and Mendocino counties in the name of Schmook Ranch LLC. The Berkeley Police Department began investigating the Allston Way grow in early 2006. Surveillance of that location led to the arrest of six other individuals, all of whom have pled guilty to charges related to the cultivation of marijuana at the Berkeley warehouse.”
Maybe BEO is right that Hedlund is providing info on existing players. still, the cache so far uncovered seems hardly worth the effort….
June 25, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Mammy Bear, you don’t need teethers’ to take a swipe out of the honey pot. I live on applesauce & chili personally. I fart the ocasional rainbow, ain’t no big deal.
Thank you feds for leaving my meth alone. I’m going to go listen to my favorite recording artist “kid rocks”, while my meth batch finishes up, looks mighty icey in them jugs.
June 25, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Hey, open your ears, how about alittle respect for everyone’s opinion!!
June 25, 2008 at 3:23 pm
ok tweeky keep on keepin on bro !!!
June 25, 2008 at 3:24 pm
Where is a MAP showing all the properties searched? This should be public information by now. Someone needs to ask the right person and get it up for public viewing. Heraldo, are you up for the challenge?
June 25, 2008 at 3:24 pm
hey mama bear, FUCK off…how about that, ….why cant i SAY WHAT THE FUCK i WANT AND YOU DEAL WITH IT……..you must live in where its not burnin…now re fer to first sentence
June 25, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Hi open your ears, I didn’t expect anyhting else from you…find another way to express yourself, if you want to be heard!!Sticks and stones baby!!
June 25, 2008 at 3:30 pm
OK sorry but all this has me fuckin fuming that we are not together on this and all the other bullshit, my other way to express myself is my FULLY AUTOMATIC BNR…and its hard to shoot it right now……you know with all the activity..but you must noy live where its fucking burnin, not just forest either structures also…4.4mil to raid a few parcels and get under 200,000 yee haww………..I think thats fucked..didnt mean 2 get on you
June 25, 2008 at 3:32 pm
all good , I understand everyone’s frustration with this situation, and I think everyone deserves their own say!! So, open your ears, at least you care!!
June 25, 2008 at 3:36 pm
I agree everyone deserves there own say thats why I can say what I said, that said, I cannot gaurentee my future post will be eliminated of psycho babble….just let me vent…
June 25, 2008 at 3:39 pm
ok ok I hear you
June 25, 2008 at 3:42 pm
Just in case, Heradlo didn’t catch my other post, I want to applaud for your efforts to warn the people of Humboldt.
June 25, 2008 at 4:27 pm
I think that they know after this year their budgets are toast out here once Bush is out of the white house. They had an investigation going for two years, and they needed to close it fast before November. I am thankful that the investigation was focused on organized crime and not medical 215 growers. As much as I think it was a waste of tax payer money, and the fact that NorCal is burning all over the place, it would have made much more sense to put 4.4 million dollars into firefighting rather than eradicating a plant. 10,000 plants is less than .0001% of the pot that grows up here, they didn’t even make a dent.
If this bust was legit and it was all tied together, then good riddance and good job feds, but as others have stated here, why no pictures of all the plants and cash seized? CAMP always get their photo-op to show the citizens that they are actually doing something that justifies their existence. Where’s our photo-op to ease our minds that they are not wasting tax-payer money? I guess we’ll have to wait and see once they release information.
June 25, 2008 at 4:27 pm
The same Mexican crime cartel that controls large-scale pot growing operations in Humboldt hills also controls the Meth traffic here. Take one down, you take them both down.
June 25, 2008 at 4:30 pm
HEY! Why hasn’t anybody looked into a possible connection of the mass-lay offs at the bulb farm and the mass bust of mexican mafia dope growing on the other hand? Co-incidence? I don’t think so. But only The Humboldt Herald knows for sure.
June 25, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Say, you wise fellas. If YOU were sitting on top of a pile of marijuana 10,000 plants high, would YOU advertise it? Don’t you think somebody with a gun would try to take it away from you? Like those AAs in Fortuna did a couple months back?
June 25, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Whew! It sounds like we’re all getting it out this week, eh!?
I thought I was going off yesterday… . Kinda feels good to not be so alone on spewing hard and cussing up a storm. Glad ears and mama made peace.
June 25, 2008 at 4:35 pm
you guys who blame everything on Mexicans are very ignorant to what is really going on here. Noone busted was mexican. There is no freakin Mexican mafia here. The biggest “large scale pot growing operations” in humboldt are done by locals. Ive lived here my whole life and blaming the problems that have been plaguing our communities for years on the Mexicans is gross ignorance and racism and the typical mob mentality that creates racial violence. large scale grows, meth and heroin were a problem here long before the Mexican cartel RUMORS started!
June 25, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Thanks, Mama Bear. Just doing my (self-appointed, unpaid) job.
June 25, 2008 at 4:39 pm
True, anon 5:35 but most meth and heroin does come from Mexico and is trafficked by Mexican gangs.
June 25, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Interesting that the one and only comment on the article at the Eureka Reporter is by a Fortuna businessman who whines about how unfair it is for our government to enforce the law. Cry me a river, crybaby. Keep that up and I’ll boycott your Friendly little burg.
June 25, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Why would someone risk smuggling meth from Mexico when there are so many manufacturers of it right here?
June 25, 2008 at 4:43 pm
that may or may not be true beo, as I drive by numerous “white” run meth labs everyday in my community, and as I understand it a large quantity of heroin comes from asia, the fact is the mexicans are a very popular scapegoat in this country lately.
June 25, 2008 at 4:49 pm
This isn’t connected to Hedlund, at least not yet. The 2000-acre parcel they’re focused on straddles the Humboldt/Mendo border below Whitethorn. It was a Barnum Timber TPZ parcel, sold off a few years ago and subdivided, like Shmook Ranch and Vilica, via 2 LLCs, one for each county. That makes it an illegal subdivision, but the counties haven’t gone after it.
It looks to me like the ‘corporate’ organization underpinning the ‘criminal conspiracy’ is these two LLCs. Anyone who bought shares in this cheap subdivision, including many straight-up 215 homesteaders, are getting the Mexican Mafia treatment from the feds. This is what’s happening. We saw it with local Code Enforcement, and now we see who they learned it from. Sick.
June 25, 2008 at 4:54 pm
I’m just going on what I’ve read: some meth is cooked here but most comes from Mexico; some heroin comes from asia but most comes from Mexico. In Mexico they can import mass quantities of meth precursors from China and set up giant labs (protected by corrupt officials); most asian heroin goes to Europe as it is much more difficult to smuggle across an ocean. That said most Mexicans are honest hard working people not involved in immoral/illegal activities– I was not trying to disparage them as a group.
June 25, 2008 at 4:55 pm
LLCs? Where have we seen those before?
June 25, 2008 at 4:56 pm
I hope the county is burnt out (much like the worthless hippies). I wish the fires to continue until every grow house, dispensary, field and bud is charred to a crisp…perhaps even some growers as well.
DIAF Humboldt County.
June 25, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Is there a Barnum/Hedlund connection? I thought heard there was but can’t remember exactly what it was.
June 25, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Why are you so full of Hate????
June 25, 2008 at 5:00 pm
I assume u meant Anon 4:56.
June 25, 2008 at 5:01 pm
Yea that dudes trippin
June 25, 2008 at 5:01 pm
Hey ANONYMOUS 4:56…You really hope the county keeps on burning? Well, I would have to say that probably 99% of people here disagree with you, that was pretty ignorant
June 25, 2008 at 5:02 pm
As for Beo and someguy somewhere…thanks for posting that info fellas. Very interesting, very valuable. Makes you wonder.
Hedlund connected to all this? Wouldn’t be a long shot. I mean it just seems more than a little weird…
Let’s review what we know so far:
1.) This investigation has been going on for at least two years (ca. 2006) , and involves various local, state and federal agencies.
2.) The Allston St (Berkeley) grow op, was under investigation during 2006.
3.) Josh Lonetree Hedlund was behind the Allston St operation. Josh was busted.
4.) Josh has been very, very cooperative and has managed to stay out of prison so far, as evidenced by his sentencing date being delayed a suspiciously high number of times.
5.) Josh narced off Kite a couple months ago. Kite took off.
6.) Josh is well connected throughout CA from Santa Cruz to Mendo and Hum Cos., and was involved in various businesses, massive land and real estate acquisitions, and large-for-profit grow ops.
7.) Josh forfeited his right to massive swaths of land, and agreed to random search and seizure of properties in Mendo and Hum.
8.) This week the feds were kicking ass and taking names. Where? Properties in Northern Mendocino and Southern Humboldt Cos.
HUH!?
It wouldn’t be right to jump to any conclusions at this point, but all this info put together sure does make you wonder, doesn’t it?
And all the while, Josh and his few remaining supporters remain silent. WHY?
I know when someone wrongfully accuses me of something, I throw a hissy fit and defend my innocence like my life depended on it.
Once the smoke clears (no pun intended) and the feds go home (or at least most of them) maybe we can all sit back, relax and take a good, long hard look at this whole mess.
June 25, 2008 at 5:03 pm
just ignore him, he only wants attention.
June 25, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Yes, both were heavily involved in organizing against the county’s proposed TPZ ordinance last year. Barnum has spoken favorably about Josh’s entrepreneurship when addressing the public. I’m sure Bill will correct me if I’m wrong.
June 25, 2008 at 5:07 pm
4:56… Think of all the wildlife dissplaced by Fires. Let me tell you what I hope happens to you!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I hope you live a Great and fullfilling life that includes a High paying job, a beautiful life partner, smart, loving kids, and a 4000sq.ft. house…
May Peace be with us all
June 25, 2008 at 5:07 pm
Ah yes the comment about him being an “outstanding young entrepreneur.” Brings new meaning to outstanding. Makes me think there is more to there relationship. what say you Bill?
June 25, 2008 at 5:08 pm
160k … wow, that’s like 50lbs and some change. 450 fed’s, what a F’in waste of tax payer dollars. F’off back to the bay are you F’in losers.
June 25, 2008 at 5:08 pm
That’s the spirit Hippieville resident
June 25, 2008 at 5:10 pm
Heraldo’s post certainly sheds some very telling light on the whole Hedlund Connection now, doesn’t it!?
June 25, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Hate just fuels the fire (no pun intended)
June 25, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Please Bill, inlighten us.
June 25, 2008 at 5:12 pm
I went to high school with Bill. NO way does he want to be associated with Hedlund.
June 25, 2008 at 5:12 pm
Hedlund was arrested in March 2006.
The FBI spokesman said today the investigation culminating in yesterday’s busts started in early 2006 (in Redding? I need to listen to the interview again).
I’ve heard from a couple sources the name of the key player targeted in the current actions, and I don’t know if he’s involved with Josh. But I’ll keep that name to myself until it comes out in the press.
June 25, 2008 at 5:14 pm
That’s a new development if true.
June 25, 2008 at 5:15 pm
That name will tell us a great deal about a possible Hedlund connection.
June 25, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Beowulf you should really try getting your facts straight. 95% of all heroin in the world is produced in Afghanistan not Mexico. And isn’t it interesting that the heroin problem in this country was under control when the Taliban controlled that country, but since our occupation of Afghanistan, heroin is back on the rise bigger than ever.
Also most meth is made in the good ole US of A. I used to do counter narcotics operations with the DEA when I was in the navy, we busted millions of pounds of coke and pot, but never once did we see any meth or heroin. That’s not to say none of it crosses the border through Mexico, but the majority of all meth in this country is made in a bath tub in people’s homes.
As hard as it is for most of you to believe, our government controls the flow of the majority of drugs that flow into this country. They make money on every angle of it. Selling it, transporting it, busting the criminals, and their friends that own the corporate owned prisons making billions from housing these so-called criminals. It’s just another control structure designed to divide and conquer us all – And it’s working.
June 25, 2008 at 5:17 pm
AnonyMISS:
I understand your wanting to defend an old high school chum, but why don’t we let Bill speak for himself. For what it’s worth, there’s a lot of people I went to high school with that have done plenty of shit I never put them at doing. Remember, high school was a long time ago. People change.
June 25, 2008 at 5:19 pm
I am merely guessing by my knowledge of their types. I did not talk to Bill about it. I only knew him in high school and now socially but not often, and I just can’t see him associating with anything left wing or pot related. Possibly personal property rights related though!
June 25, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Do a little more research and a little less puffing smoker. Fact: most meth and heroin on the west coast is from Mexico.
June 25, 2008 at 5:22 pm
You forget how we’ve come together.
June 25, 2008 at 5:22 pm
definately doesnt seem like it was worth their time but this could be the start. 10000 plants does not equal 20-60 million. inflated numbers trying to justify their presence.
June 25, 2008 at 5:24 pm
Why does everybody keep focusing on how much weed they’ve found? This isn’t about weed. It’s about MONEY. Tax evasion and fraud and “criminal conspiracy”. Weed just happens to be how they made too much money. When the feds raid a house looking for a paper trail or hidden cash, if they find a small room with 30 plants they’re not gonna just leave it behind to grow on. Marijuana is just caught in the crossfire on this one. The real crime is greed. At least that’s what it looks like to me at this point.
June 25, 2008 at 5:25 pm
have there been any arrests or big seizures up lost river rd? any word of the roadblock there?
how many parcels were the 2000 acres broken into and how many families lived there on the former barnum tract?
June 25, 2008 at 5:28 pm
gambleer,
do you know any of the people raided? the people that i know are far from greedy. busting small-time growers is a LOT easier than busting the big boys.
im still waiting for reports of plants being flown or trucked out of whitethorn………..
June 25, 2008 at 5:35 pm
No theo, I don’t. From what I’ve heard, a lot of the people being searched aren’t the ones who are gonna be in trouble. It seems to me they are following a long paper trail to a small few. You don’t have to be greedy to associate with someone who is. I guess I harbor a little bit of prejudice against those who seek to exploit the herb I love. Grow your own. Sell a little to pay the bills. Some of the people I know want a whole lot more than that. I do know them, though. That means my house could be next.
June 25, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Seeing that I spent four years doing counter narcotic operations in the Caribbean, I can tell you with absolute certainty that there are no major poppy fields Mexico, not compared to what’s being grown in Afghanistan. I did say that it is probably being brought across the border through Mexico, but it is not manufactured there. 95% of the opium grown in the world comes from Afghanistan. Look it up, that’s a fact. I’ve worked in the intel community so I know what I’m talking about. What’s your drug war experience? How about you quit this anti-Mexican rant and quit blaming all the problems of this country on the Mexicans and/or our lack of border security. Or better yet, get a job with the feds and try working in this joke of a war on drugs and you’ll get to see first hand about what I am talking about. I’m tired of clueless stupid people that spout off at people and need to insult them, when someone calls them on their BS. I need to go smoke some of that “devil-weed” to bring me down to the level your brain is operating at. There is no room for Bill O’Reilly tactics in this conversation.
June 25, 2008 at 5:50 pm
You are just plain wrong, smoker. Google heroin and Mexico and you will find numerous sources which acknowledge the widely know facts that most heroin and meth on the the west coast comes from Mexico. There are major poppy fields in Mexico. Afghanistan is the single largest producer in the world of opium but does not produce “95% of world supply. Very little Afghan heroin makes its way to the U.S. Where you used to work is irrelevant to the facts. Do a little research.
June 25, 2008 at 5:52 pm
just spoke with a friend of hedlund’s, who’s a friend of mine. he made it amply clear that hedlund is wise and thoughtful and very well connected but did not think that he would rat out anyone unless such a person had crossed his path previously.
hedlund has cooperated with feds in terms of permitting warrantless surveys of his property but did not believe hedlund would give up names randomly in lieu of avoiding a prison sentence. said hedlund maintains a certain level of integrity regarding this matter. his safety would come into question were he to simply offer up a who’s who in the emerald gem.
hedlund has written computer programs that chronicle who what and where exists geographically in HUM/MEND that the feds are surely aware of. to extinguish this native would surely not be using him to the best of his potential – not that he’ll ever be available to the feds for their perfect scenario usage.
personally, i don’t believe that what hedlund knows would be the sole basis for such a large scale investigation like the kind we’re seeing.
it might simply be that Feds are employing scare tactics to curb the overall output of production.
hedlund seems to have outwitted feds in terms of how much he’s willing to surrender to them.
June 25, 2008 at 5:54 pm
Beo/Smoker:
Dont get it twisted. Were talking about Feds and Humboldt here Not Mexico…
Come on Brothers Take a moment and breath instead of trying to point out the short comings of other bloggers….
June 25, 2008 at 5:54 pm
I haven’t said anything that is anti-Mexican and your confusion and misinterpretation of what I’ve written says a great deal about your lack of insight. Besides this heroin/meth rant is irrelevant to what is going on with regard to the federal raids.
June 25, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Someguy: at least that is the spin Hedlund wants others to believe.
June 25, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Dude I never said your anti-Mexican. And tell me the Relevancy of those facts there smarty.
June 25, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Hippieville my post was not in responce to yours.
June 25, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Or lets meet at starbucks and you can tell me in person….
June 25, 2008 at 6:01 pm
was hedlund involved with the former barnum property out lost river? if not, he is IRRELEVANT to this issue. the focus is on a 2000 acre tract near whitethorn, not hedlund.
June 25, 2008 at 6:01 pm
oh my Bad…. But come on guys lets keep on trac here
June 25, 2008 at 6:01 pm
Hedlund has cooperated to a greater extent than his buddy told you; see Kite Finds the Feather.
June 25, 2008 at 6:04 pm
“was hedlund involved with the former barnum property out lost river?” Well that’s the question isn’t it Theo. We will know more when we find out who the focus of the investigation is.
June 25, 2008 at 6:06 pm
What do poppy fields in Mexico have to do with meth? The fact is that there is massive meth produced right here in Humboldt County and there has been for many years.
June 25, 2008 at 6:07 pm
Beowulf – As I stated now twice, I do not deny that it is being shipped over our borders via Mexico, but the majority of opium production comes from a country we currently are occupying. No opium = no heroin. Try reading my original post again, you missed the point I was making.
Everyone keeps questioning why these busts happened, and only one person here got it right. It’s not about weed. It’s about money – money laundering and tax evasion. If you are profiting from something whether it’s legal or not and you don’t give the government their cut, this is what happens. Doesn’t matter if you grow small time or big time, they want their money. Why do you think the Taxman and postal inspector offices sent agents with the FBI and DEA. The IRS being there tells me they weren’t paying their taxes. The postal inspector was there because they were obviously shipping out of state. They got greedy and stupid and deserved to get busted. The laws are liberal enough in Humboldt, that when I hear people this greedy going down I sure ain’t losing any sleep over it. These are the people we don’t want up here. 60 guns and some of them were automatic weapons? Not the kind of people I would want as a neighbor.
June 25, 2008 at 6:09 pm
The meth is so good round here my teethers melted. No more flossing round here.
June 25, 2008 at 6:11 pm
1866 930 METH can help you LOL….
June 25, 2008 at 6:14 pm
Smoker afgahn heroin ends up in europe not the u.s. I agree these raids are about money more than pot though.
June 25, 2008 at 6:19 pm
Does anyone know if Opperation Southern Sweep is Over????
June 25, 2008 at 6:20 pm
listen to kmud!!!
June 25, 2008 at 6:20 pm
naw taint over till the fat fed sings
June 25, 2008 at 6:20 pm
You’re right Hippieville, I’m sorry Beowulf you are not the source of my frustration over this issue and I apologize for venting on you. I’m just really frustrated with this area as a whole right now. I moved here years ago thinking Humboldt was different than the rest of the country, but since all this started, I’ve read all the posts on our local blogs and it’s pretty sad what has happened to this once magical place. We now have self-proclaimed editors running around town putting legal 215 patients at risk and breaking the law to do so. And instead of it outraging the community, people are actually thinking this is a good thing. The idea of America is dead, just bring on the socialism/communism and get it over with. I’m just sad at how willing we are as a whole to give up all of our civil liberties and freedoms so easily, when people in the third world would kill to be in our shoes. I’m sorry beowulf I have no issues with you at all. It’s of all us that are the problem.
June 25, 2008 at 6:21 pm
I wounder if there’s a Operation Northern Sweep is in action of investigation.
June 25, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Socialism / communism? If you think what is happening in this country is leftist agenda you need a class in political science. This country is sliding into fascism.
June 25, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Forgive me for being such a naif, but isn’t the real issue that we have greedy people taking a dump on We the People’s laws? And other people (law enforcement) finally doing something about it? So now, the disrespectful and arrogant law-breakers are on the defensive for a change? And they don’t like it? (And who the f*ck cares what they like or don’t like!)
June 25, 2008 at 6:28 pm
no worries smoker, peace
June 25, 2008 at 6:29 pm
LOL Anonymous, whatever it is, it’s not the free country we thought it was growing up. Fascism tyranny whatever name you want to put on it, I don’t believe in the left ring/right wing crap, they are all the same to me – corrupt politicians. Every generation of my family have served this country in every war, and if we knew then what we know now I guarantee you none of us would have voluntarily signed up for it.
June 25, 2008 at 6:30 pm
greedy people? i havent heard of ONE bust that was not within 215 guidelines!!!!
listen to the kmud news for info on the main bust up lost river.
June 25, 2008 at 6:30 pm
please, show me evidence of ONE bust that has not focused on 215 growers!!!
June 25, 2008 at 6:35 pm
Right on smoker,
everything you just said was fucking right on.
Except, i think that 93 percent of poppy crops are grown in affganastan.
June 25, 2008 at 6:37 pm
oh boy…gonna delete the comment again……what was bad about it heraldo???
June 25, 2008 at 6:39 pm
I didn’t delete it because it was never posted. Perhaps you can express your disdain for the feds without turning into Eric Cartman.
June 25, 2008 at 6:42 pm
boy what free speech you have………..
June 25, 2008 at 6:42 pm
has ANYONE heard of any non-medical gardens being raided?
June 25, 2008 at 6:43 pm
free speech is just that…………free!!!!! maybe u should hit the road too…
June 25, 2008 at 6:43 pm
Theo, I appreciate your insistence on this point.
June 25, 2008 at 6:49 pm
there full tempertantrum in effect , I NOW will be an ignorant ass, and to answer your question, no I wasnt one before, just acting, perty good dough ha?…….here we go….batten down the hatchets…….
June 25, 2008 at 6:50 pm
by the way who the phuc is eric cartman…..jeraldo?
June 25, 2008 at 6:52 pm
don’t degenerate, folks.
keep it positive.
the topic is the investigation, why its happening, whether its for the best for all people, and staying informed as a citizenry.
for all we know, the naysayers above who are incediary and accusatory and who pick fights and label people are FDA/FBI hired goons designed to divide our morale.
stay on topic, keep it brief and remember to care about others.
June 25, 2008 at 6:57 pm
there are FBI agents on this site. they mentioned my name to try to intimidate me.
too bad that im not a grower!!!! suckers!!!
June 25, 2008 at 7:01 pm
Of course they are on here… Big Brother is Every where…
June 25, 2008 at 7:03 pm
We haven’t gotten any real details yet, so no one really knows who could busted. They did say it was all connected to one organization, and with the presence of postal inspectors and the IRS and the DOJ one could only assume it was an organized crime investigation. Screwing with medipot patients in an election year would not be a wise move. I personally don’t think any of these raids were on legal 215 gardens, but we will have to wait and see once they start to indite people. If they do screw with 215 grows, ASA’s and many others attorney’s will be all over it.
June 25, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Wow i heard the Kmud interview with one of those raided, he sounded like a good guy trying to homestead with his family, not an organized criminal type. If that is all there is to this– what a joke and waste of resources.
June 25, 2008 at 7:10 pm
smoker,
EVERY raid has been under 215 guidelines that ive heard so far!!! the guy that beowulf referred to was part of the lost river property that is being seached. the guy admitted to having 36 plants within a 10 by 10 area.
this is NOT an organized group that is being targeted. the feds are randomly hassling 215 card holders.
June 25, 2008 at 7:26 pm
Sorry I haven’t read any details of the bust yet. That is not good news. I knew something smelled funny when we didn’t get big pictures in the paper and on the news with stacks of burning plants. Also strange that no one was arrested. Two year investigation and zero arrests – pretty pathetic if you ask me. I still think there is something bigger here with all the agencies involved, but I am wrong more times than not
.
June 25, 2008 at 7:26 pm
Peace be with you all
It has felt very violating to be occupied by an invading force theses last few days. Where are the protests? Where are the blockades? I just wonder how many of those plants were truly being grown for a patient who lives in an un-215-friendly rental, city, or state? Maybe some of you have not had to deal with the side effects of “pills.” or witnessed with your own eyes the side-effect-less-ness, and significant improvement of a loved one with the use of Herb. Only petroleum has been an ingredient in more medicines through out history then Herb. Your grandma or your grandpa had salves, clothes, books, and medicines made of Herb. Yea some of that pot was going to be used in shady cops and robbers way, but some was going to a sick brother or sister. If you can’t get your medicine cause of rules, then hooray for those who break laws to ease suffering. Blessed be the pot grower, I love you all!
love eternal
tad
June 25, 2008 at 7:29 pm
the feds thought that “something bigger” would be here also….
obviously their intelligence was false. just like the WMD intelligence was wrong in iraq. im not too surprised. ive never had much faith in government workers.
June 25, 2008 at 7:34 pm
HERE……………JUST THOUGHT i LET YOU ALL KNOWN I AM LISTENING AND DATAMINING AND PARCELQUEST. YOU ALL
June 25, 2008 at 7:36 pm
Times-Standard – “Over the course of Tuesday’s activity, officers located around ten thousand marijuana plants estimated to be worth between $25 and $60 million on the street. They seized 30 firearms, including fully automatic weapons, one vehicle, and more than $160,000 in cash.”
Check this quote. That’s like saying I won the lottery buy i’m only taking increments of $100 every month.
If it’s worth between $25 and $60 million why is there only a pittance of cash on site? Further, why didn’t they state that owing to the season the plants are actually worth nothing in their current state?
Classic disinformation inflation.
June 25, 2008 at 7:42 pm
they havent found 10,000 plants, thats a lie….putting a monetary value on imaginary plants is a new one to me.
is this the new kind of economics that america will rely on once all the production jobs are gone?
June 25, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Ha! I was wondering how Theo would handle that figure. He has a continuing problem with reality.
June 25, 2008 at 7:55 pm
reality? ill believe the figure when i see the plants. no reports of plants being trucked or flown out of whitethorn have surfaced. ive seen no pictures. ive heard no news through the grapevine.
do you have info that i dont?
June 25, 2008 at 8:34 pm
“Over the course of Tuesday’s activity, officers located around ten thousand marijuana plants estimated to be worth between $25 and $60 million on the street. They seized 30 firearms, including fully automatic weapons, one vehicle, and more than $160,000 in cash.”
Times-Standard
http://www.times-standard.com/ci_9691940
June 25, 2008 at 8:35 pm
$25 to $60 million for under 100 plants? who taught these feds to do math?
June 25, 2008 at 8:38 pm
any news is for the masses who are sedated.
any quote is legitimate if it comes from an FBI agent.
June 25, 2008 at 8:40 pm
only 1 vehicle worthy of being seized and driven around by undercover feds? I wonder what it was lol. If those feds would have gotten any good loot they would have staged a photo-op. Guess 450 feds look a little silly posing with a pickup truck, couple bags of weed and 30 guns.
June 25, 2008 at 8:40 pm
what would an FBI agent know about pot?
they couldnt find more than 100 plants in Humboldt County!!!!!! in FIVE days!!!!!
ill bet that the rats and deer did more damage to pot plants than any federal agents dreamed of doing…..
June 25, 2008 at 8:42 pm
guns are legal and 215 grown weed is legal!!!!
not that a little FBI agent would know anything…
June 25, 2008 at 8:57 pm
Peace be with you Theo
Cops count two inch starts as $5,000 street value plants. They’re pigs not farmers. They also always inflate the numbers and perhaps the “organization” which the bust. It is bullshit, but still we need to rise to the bullshit.
They are datamining all we say, and this is only the first sweep. During the first Operation Falcon when Attorney General Gonzales was asked why they waited, in some cases months, to raid wanted murders? he answered “we wanted to see how people would react.” But, of course Arcata spent their money rounding up homeless, many of whom were never charged, so no one gave a shit. Study what bullshit Operation Falcon has become today. Give them an inch and they’ll jack boot your head.
love eternal
tad
June 25, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Perhaps they should “jack boot” harder so you get the point.
http://srimg.ny.publicus.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=SR&Date=20080624&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=843660006&Ref=AR&Profile=1353
I hope this is what remains of your grow houses, your fields, your county, and your family.
June 25, 2008 at 10:11 pm
“hedlund has written computer programs that chronicle who what and where exists geographically in HUM/MEND that the feds are surely aware of.” That’s funny, Josh writing computer programs; trust me Josh doesn’t no much about computers, he’s more into fashion shows. Maybe he entered some info on a computer map but programing, nah. I still think that when the smoke clears we will learn that Josh had his hand in the formation of these LLCs and the money pot (no pun intended). Josh certainly provoked the feds into looking into humboldt/mendo properties held by LLCs.
June 25, 2008 at 10:17 pm
beo,
a fed threatens your county, your family and your fields and you STILL obsess about josh? get over it!!!
June 26, 2008 at 3:09 am
Theo: why are you so concerned with others “obsessing” over Josh as you put it?
After reading Beo’s posts I don’t get the impression that he’s not concerned about the fed threat (to paraphrase you). I think what he and others on this thread are trying to establish is whether there’s a link between Josh and the recent slew of busts. Me thinks you dost protest too much.
June 26, 2008 at 3:13 am
Just for the record:
Josh majored in environmental science at UC Santa Cruz, not computer science, or programing. The only thing Josh knows how to “program” are the dates of all the fasion shows and wine auctions into his Blackberry.
June 26, 2008 at 3:27 am
Dear open your mouth:
You’re right, IT IS a free country, and you CAN say whatever you want. But if you go around spouting off like a jack-ass and cussing up a storm some people might think you’re an idiot. Yell fire in a crowded theater when there isn’t a fire and you go to jail. Threaten to kill the president and you disapear forever. Ask your female co-workers for bjs and get busted for sexual harrassement. Follow me so far?
Just like you have a right to post whatever you want on Heraldo’s site, he has the right to edit or delete anything you say. That’s part of it being his site. Got that, guy? Maybe you should think about starting your own site. You could call it “Spewers are Us.” Just a thought.
Eric Cartman is a character on South Park who cusses incessantly.
June 26, 2008 at 11:53 am
Porfiry Petrovich , fuck off asshole, blah blah blah blah, tell some one who cares, hopefully theyll be knockin on your door and it scare you outta humboldt….I didnt evben read your shit all I saw was the first line…thats how much I care about you and your family ass……..getta outta humboldt…
June 26, 2008 at 12:54 pm
thanks for telling me who cartman is, makes everything clear on this stupid ass paper…..south park….grow up little dumbasses……….
June 26, 2008 at 1:22 pm
School just let out and the kids are bored already.
July 18, 2008 at 5:35 pm
# Porfiry Petrovich Says:
June 26, 2008 at 3:27 am
Dear open your mouth:
You’re right, IT IS a free country, and you CAN say whatever you want. But if you go around spouting off like a jack-ass and cussing up a storm some people might think you’re an idiot. Yell fire in a crowded theater when there isn’t a fire and you go to jail. Threaten to kill the president and you disapear forever. Ask your female co-workers for bjs and get busted for sexual harrassement. Follow me so far?
Just like you have a right to post whatever you want on Heraldo’s site, he has the right to edit or delete anything you say. That’s part of it being his site. Got that, guy? Maybe you should think about starting your own site. You could call it “Spewers are Us.” Just a thought.
Eric Cartman is a character on South Park who cusses incessantly.
PORFIRY YOU GOT THE BOOT ON SOHUM PARLANCE AND COMPLAINED. WHERE IS THE CONSISTENCY?
WE ALL KNOW WHO YOU ARE. DIDN’T EVEN GRADUATE FROM BERKELEY. SO YOU ARE WORKING FOR THEM NOW. WELL AT LEAST YOU ARE EARNING AN HONEST LIVING WHILE TELLING YOUR LIES.
August 28, 2008 at 10:43 am
Who are the “we” you write of? Josh Hedlund”s multiple personalities? Is that the best you can do Josh, make unsupported allegations against those who have brought to light reasons and evidence that show you ,Josh Hedlund, have committed countless crimes and ratted out your “friend” Kite. Your attempts to shift attention from yourself and smear others are lame and only serve to display your severe mental deficits. Also posting under multiple names in an attempt to make it seem as though there are people who support you is pathetic.