Feds investigate Cottage Grove marijuana operation

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – The U.S. Attorney’s office in Portland says federal officials are investigating a marijuana processing facility in Oregon near Interstate 5, a major drug-trafficking route, after an explosion there injured a man who was previously convicted in a money laundering operation linked to a pot-trafficking operation.

The probe is a rare instance in which U.S. officials are investigating a marijuana case in a state in which the drug has been legalized, contrary to federal laws that ban possession and distribution of pot.

The Register-Guard, a newspaper in Eugene, near where the Nov. 16 explosion occurred, said Eric Scully was hospitalized with burns to his face and hands after the blast in Cottage Grove.

Kevin Sonoff, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office, told The Associated Press he cannot comment on active investigations.