California task force seizes nearly $23M in illegal cannabis in Oakland
OAKLAND, Calif. - California’s Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce has seized close to $23 million in illicitly cultivated cannabis in East Oakland, the governor's office announced on Tuesday.
Specifically, the task force confiscated more than 21,000 illegal cannabis plants totaling $17.8 million. Those searches also led to the seizure of more than $10,000 in cash, as well as over 3,000 pounds of illicit cannabis flower worth more than $5 million, according to the office of Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Officials said these arrests were done to "safeguard public health" and to "preserve the integrity" of California’s regulated cannabis market.
Specifics of the operations weren't given.
"As shown by the amounts seized in these search warrants, these large-scale illegal operations are a burden on California’s valuable environmental resources and need to be removed," Nathaniel Arnold, California Department of Fish and Wildlife chief of law enforcement, said in a statement.
Oakland cop will not be charged after cannabis raid
The Contra Costa County District Attorney says they did not find sufficient evidence to charge an Oakland police officer who owns property in Antioch that was raided last April by Cannabis Control officers during an illegal mairjuana growing operation sting.
A multitude of agencies got involved in the multimillion-dollar busts.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife led the enforcement operations with support from the Department of Cannabis Control, California Department of Tax and Fee Administration and the Oakland Police Department.
Newsom said he created this task force in 2022. Since then, the task force has seized and destroyed over 162 tons of illegal cannabis totaling $536 million through over 350 operations. The task force also destroyed 526,037 plants, seized 167 firearms, and arrested 59 people, Newsom's office said.
Illegal cannabis grows aren't unique to Oakland; they occur throughout the Bay Area and the country.
One particular illegal grow house was discovered in Antioch at a property owned by an Oakland police officer, who was not charged with any crime.