Cash intercepted in the mail leads to pot bust in Fieldbrook, California

 Posted on September 13, 2012 in Criminal Defense

The Humboldt County Drug Task force says that a 32-year-old Fieldbrook, California man has been arrested on several marijuana-related drug charges. Officials say that agents intercepted $5,000 in cash that purportedly was being mailed to a Fieldbrook residence. Media accounts do not indicate how the mail was intercepted or what led authorities to look into the piece of mail.

Agents from the drug task force apparently went to the Fieldbrook residence that reportedly was listed on the mailed parcel. Authorities say that the agents intended to inquire about the sum of cash. The drug task force issued a statement that says agents contacted a 32-year-old man at the Fieldbrook home.

While law enforcement was questioning the man at the residence, agents claim that they could smell marijuana emanating from inside. The man at the home reportedly was detained and the site was locked down until law enforcement could obtain a search warrant, according to the Times-Standard.

County officials claim that agents found four bags of processed marijuana, each weighing one pound inside the home. In addition to the pot, officials seized five handguns and $22,000 in cash from inside the home during the raid. Authorities say that the $22,000 from inside the residence and the additional $5,000 seized from the mail will be held for a possible drug-asset forfeiture.

The 32-year-old was taken to a county lockup in Eureka, California. Authorities accuse the man of drug and weapons crimes. Humboldt County authorities say the man faces charges of cultivation of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sales and for being armed in the commission of a felony. Bail has been set at $50,000. Humboldt County authorities say that the case remains under investigation.

Source: Times-Standard, "More on the pot bust near Fieldbrook," Sep. 11, 2012