Investigators haul away about 1,200 marijuana plants after raiding an illegal grow site in North Palm Springs on Sept. 19, 2019. (Credit: Riverside County District Attorney's Office)
Investigators uprooted about 1,200 pot plants and arrested two men Thursday during a raid at an illegal marijuana-growing operation in North Palm Springs, officials said.
The bust unfolded in a remote portion of the unincorporated county area near 16th Avenue and Indian Canyon Drive, according to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office. It was spearheaded by the D.A.’s Riverside County Cannabis Regulation Task Force.
Investigators arrest two men during a raid at an illegal marijuana grow site in North Palm Springs on Sept. 19, 2019. (Credit: Riverside County District Attorney’s Office)
“During a previous flyover of the area by a California Highway Patrol aircraft, the illegal marijuana grow was spotted on several parcels totaling about 6 acres,” prosecutors said in a written statement.
Ronald David Barrett, 54, and Jose Manuel Mercado Beltran, 43, were found at the scene and arrested on suspicion of cultivation of marijuana, according to the D.A.’s Office. Both were believed to be living at the grow site.
Both men were issued misdemeanor citations, Riverside County booking records show.
An investigators carried a marijuana plant during a raid at an illegal grow site in North Palm Springs on Sept. 19, 2019. (Credit: Riverside County District Attorney’s Office)
