Colorado and federal agents have raided illegal marijuana operations across the state the past six weeks in a concerted effort to take out companies marketing marijuana to different parts of the country.
U.S. Attorney John Walsh’s staff has filed numerous against illegal operations that are secretly growing marijuana in Colorado for shipment across the country.
Local, state and federal agents have arrested 32 people, most of them residents from outside Colorado, on illegal marijuana charges. Some of the offenders were citizens of Mexico and Cuba, according to a news release Thursday by Jeff Dorschner, Walsh’s spokesman.
Illegal Colorado marijuana
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About 20,000 marijuana plants were destroyed as well as 300 kilograms of dried marijuana.
Offenders were caught growing pot on federal lands and private residences, the news release says.
“In every case, the marijuana grows were both illegal under federal law and unlicensed by state authorities under Colorado’s marijuana regulatory system,” the news release says.
The biggest illegal marijuana ring that was dismantled was in southern Colorado.
Authorities in September who were part of an illegal marijuana syndicate that harvested pot at eight properties — more than 1,000 plants — and shipped it to Florida via UPS. Agents confiscated 28 guns.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206, kmitchell@denverpost.com or @kirkmitchell or denverpost.com/coldcases
Marijuana is hauled away from an illegal grow on public land. (U.S. Department of Justice)
