Hoquiam Police Department officers served a search warrant on a home in the 500 block of L Street on Friday, Dec. 1, related to a suspected illegal grow. The Grays Harbor Drug Task Force initiated the investigation into illegal marijuana grows operated by Chinese nationals and coordinated the service of search warrants all over the county Nov. 28.

In addition to the arrest of three suspects at the L Street house with a U-Haul truck attempting to dismantle the illegal grow inside, officers and detectives recovered numerous marijuana plants and other evidence, according to Hoquiam Police Chief Jeff Myers.

“In sorting through the evidence and paperwork, (an officer) discovered a receipt for a recently rented storage unit,” said Myers. “He was able to check on the location before applying for a search warrant as he had probable cause the contents of the storage unit were directly related to the illegal grow.”

That search warrant was served on Thursday afternoon and led to the discovery of a large quantity of high-quality, packaged marijuana, likely harvested from the marijuana plants within the L Street house before the grow was to be dismantled, said Myers. “It is important to note the investigation indicates all of this marijuana was destined for illicit sales outside of the state,” he added.

The Hoquiam Police Department continues to work with the Grays Harbor Drug Task Force and other agencies as this investigation unfolds. The Grays Harbor Drug Task Force is an interlocal investigative team with detectives assigned from the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Department and the Aberdeen and Hoquiam police departments.

Myers continues to urge citizens to report suspicious locations or activity as related to this investigation by calling Grays Harbor E911 Dispatch at 360-533-7865.