Series of raids turn up marijuana, BHO labs; 4 arrested

A lengthy investigation of illegal marijuana manufacturing and sales led to four recent raids around Deschutes County and a traffic stop on a rental moving truck that turned up thousands of plants, more than 1,000 pounds of dried marijuana, several butane honey oil labs and chemicals, authorities said Wednesday. Four people were arrested.

Late the morning of Thursday, Oct. 11, members of the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team, assisted by the Central Oregon Emergency Response Team (CERT, the region’s SWAT team), served a search warrant at a property in the 17000 block of Forked Horn Drive east of Sisters, Lt. Brian Kindel said.

A large, sophisticated indoor marijuana grow that lacked any current permits or authority for medical or recreational marijuana was found on the property, in a large metal pole building as well as the main house, Kindel said.

A large sealed structure was built within the pole building, complete with an air filtration system, a self-watering system and climate control features. A total of 4,368 marijuana plants in various stages were seized, along with 196 pounds of dried marijuana and four pounds of BHO (butane hash oil), the lieutenant said.

Residents Shaun Gutta, 28, and Krystal Severio, 27, were home at the time of the raid and were arrested and booked into the Deschutes County Jail on numerous drug manufacturing, distribution and possession charges, as well as frequenting a place where drugs are used.

Kindel said evidence gathered in the investigation indicated the pair were exporting marijuana outside of the state.

Around 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 16, CODE team members spotted a Penske rental truck leaving the area of a suspected illegal marijuana/BHO production site and stopped it on Highway 97 just south of La Pine, with assistance from Oregon State Police, also making a secondary stop on a vehicle leaving the same location.

In the truck, detectives seized 957 pounds of dried marijuana, 66 pounds of BHO extract, more than eight pounds of marijuana concentrate and three BHO/concentrate labs, Kindel said.

The truck’s occupants, Andrew Pollack, 28, of Prineville and Dusty Jones, 40 of Days Creek, were arrested on marijuana possession and distribution charges and taken to the county jail.

On Wednesday, Oct. 17, around 6:30 p.m., CODE Team detectives served a search warrant in the 1700 block of Suza Court, east of La Pine, Kindel said.

Some evidence found there tied to the truck’s contents, consisting of the same chemicals used in BHO manufacture that were left behind, among other items.

A large, newly built pole barn was on the site, in the initial stages of setup for a suspected large marijuana grow, Kindel said, but no one was there “and it appeared the property had been hastily vacated,” Kindel wrote in the news release.

Around 10 a.m. the next day, Thursday, Oct. 18, DCSO and CODE Team detectives served simultaneous search warrants in the 500 block of NE O’Neil Way and 5100 NW Canal Blvd., adjacent properties north of Redmond that are owned by the same person, Kindel said.

An illegal marijuana grow was found in a ravine on the Canal Boulevard property that lacked any permits to grow medical or recreational marijuana, the lieutenant said.

“The grow was obviously intended to be hidden from view by the placement within a deep ravine,” Kindel wrote.

The caretaker for the property was not there during the raid and has yet to be found, Kindel said, adding that “his name is being withheld for investigative purposes.” On that site, detectives seized 3,581 marijuana plants, 109 pounds of dried marijuana bud and 22 firearms.

The raids concluded the investigation, except for locating and interviewing the Canal Boulevard caretaker, Kindel said. The four arrested people have since been released from jail.