The federal depart of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement — aka “La Migra,” previously known as the INS — is staging some kind of huge operation in Arcata. Bob Doran is in the parking lot of Westwood, where something like 10 vehicles are staged. McKinleyville’s Dennis Mayo tells KHUM’s Mike Dronkers that a huge number of […]
crime
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Tawdry sordid quote of the day
from Thadeus Greenson’s story in today’s Times Standard about Chief Gunderson’s lawyer seeking a change of venue: “The bottom line is that Humboldt County has been saturated with innumerable articles, broadcasts and cyber chat relating to this case,” [lawyer Russ] Clanton wrote. “The opportunity for a fair trial has been compromised by the tawdry, sordid […]
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Sweep: Land could be seized
Federal agents: They came, they searched, they left — but not before filing documents at the county courthouse that may allow them to seize about 2,000 acres in Humboldt and Mendocino counties. Federal and local law enforcement confirmed that the land was the target of the raids conducted last week in a massive show of […]
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Ain’t it Grand part 2 (police, jails and Martin)
Some law enforcement factoids courtesy of the 2007-’08 Grand Jury Report: The Fortuna Police Dept. is housed in a “well maintained” city building. “It has a well-stocked first aid kit,” and “three fire exits are clearly marked and accessible.” The Hoopa Station “does not have adequate janitorial services,” and their garage is a mess. The […]
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The “Joint” News Release and unanswered questions
To quote the much heralded Heraldo, there was ” Little new info on pot busts ,” yesterday, and as a result (and because Hank was not around to man the front lines), the Blogthing was quiet. The couple of dozen or so agencies involved in the big sweep issued a “joint” statement, which you’ll find […]
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LA Times Story
Here. Officials said the raids did not involve legitimate medical marijuana clinics or growing operations, which are allowed under state law but not recognized by federal agencies. “Medicinal marijuana is supposed to be medicine and not a large-scale business operation,” said narcotics bureau spokeswoman Sara Simpson. “When large quantities of cash begin to change hands, […]
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‘Multi-Day Operation’
Lt. George Cavinta from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s office tells the Journal that the FBI action will not end today; there’ll be at least a few more days of action to follow. There are apparently 29 warrants to serve, Cavinta said — 27 federal and two state. They’ve only done a few of them so […]
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Down in SoHum
The bulk of the action seems to be down there. Kym K has a photo of agents in Salmon Creek. Eric Kirk is monitoring KMUD. Busts in Redway, including one witnessed by Eric himself. Also there’s apparently a good deal of action out near Whale Gulch.
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Bust in Sunny Brae
An indoor grow is being broken up in Sunny Brae right now. To reiterate, the FBI insists that this operation is targeting a single individual or group of individuals, and is not an all-purpose sweep of grow houses. UPDATE, 9:31 a.m. : Bob Doran is at 1658 Virginia Way, Arcata, where three federal agents in […]
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FBI Spokesman on KSLG
… a FBI spokesperson on the ground in Fortuna just spoke with John Matthews on KSLG. He said: This is the culmination of a two-year investigation. This is a bust of “large-scale commercial grows.” NOT medical marijuana. Agents from a variety of federal and state organizations — including the IRS and the Postal Service –will […]
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From The Sheriff’s Office
“I’m not in a position to make a comment right now because the operation is underway,” says Lt. George Cavinta of the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office. “The FBI has the command post, and it’s all the FBI’s warrants.” Cavinta said that someone — either his office or the FBI — will likely make a statement […]