Paicines
– Unified Narcotic Enforcement Team agents arrested two men and
seized a half million dollars in marijuana Wednesday during a raid
of a South County ranch.
Paicines – Unified Narcotic Enforcement Team agents arrested two men and seized a half million dollars in marijuana Wednesday during a raid of a South County ranch.
UNET agents raided the rural ranch in the 25,000 block of Panoche Road after spotting the marijuana grow operation during surveillance operations earlier this month. Agents seized 2,762 marijuana plants with an estimated value of $524,000, UNET Cmdr. Mark Colla said Thursday night. Two men suspected of being responsible for the mid-sized grow operation were arrested on drug charges, but a third suspect fled on foot. The men had tried to run from the ranch house and one had dropped a loaded rifle before fleeing, Colla said.
Michael Hennagan, 57, of Dos Palos, was arrested on felony charges of growing marijuana, conspiracy and possession of an illegal assault rifle. Hennagan is believed to be the nephew of the property owner, according to police reports. The owner has not been identified. The ranch foreman, 36-year-old Francisco Tovar, was also arrested. The Gustine resident was booked on felony charges of growing marijuana, conspiracy and illegal gun possession. Tovar, a convicted felon and illegal alien, had dropped a loaded .22-caliber rifle as he tried to run from the ranch house, Colla said.
Inside the house, agents found and seized an AK-47 assault rifle and a shotgun. The serial number on the AK-47 had been “obliterated,” according to incident reports. They also confiscated a loaded pistol from Tovar’s pickup truck.
Hennagan told UNET agents that he had allowed Tovar and two other unidentified Hispanic men to use the ranch to grow marijuana, according to police reports. In exchange for letting the men use the ranch, Hennagan told agents he was promised future payments of $15,000 or $20,000 after the dope had been harvested and sold, the report said. Tovar denied involvement in the growing operations and gave agents permission to search his home in Gustine. There agents found a .38-caliber pistol and “remnants of an indoor marijuana grow” in the attic, according to the report.
UNET agents were assisted in the bust by officers from the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office, the San Jose Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, the federal Drug Enforcement Agency and the Bureau of Land Management.
Both Hennagan and Tovar were arrested and booked into the San Benito County Jail. Hennagan is being held in lieu of $60,000 bail. Tovar’s bail is set at $30,000 and has been placed on an immigration hold pending review of his citizenship status, according to jail personnel. If convicted of growing marijuana, both men could face up to three years in state prison, according to the California Penal Code.
Brett Rowland covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or [email protected].
