Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Police burn thousands of pot plants in [ILLINOIS] forest preserve (not California!)
abclocal ^ | July 24, 2007 | Dan Ponce

Posted on 07/25/2007 6:03:21 AM PDT by dennisw

Police burn thousands of pot plants in forest preserve By Dan Ponce July 24, 2007 - Cook County Forest Preserve Police and federal agents were busy Tuesday cutting down and burning thousands of marijuana plants. The plants were found in a northwest suburban forest preserve. Investigators say they uncovered a very sophisticated pot-growing operation.

Related Links Get ABC7 Newsletters Get Desktop Alerts It is a forest of marijuana plants. "These are not wild or indigenous, these were planted to be sold," said Gary Olenkiewicz, special agent DEA.

The plants were spread out over 11 fields. There are between 20,000 and 30,000 marijuana plants, all discovered at the Crabtree Nature Preserve in Barrington. A tip came in from an intern from a wildlife research company who noticed some men suspiciously pumping out water from a lake.

"We contacted DEA, our officers work in conjunction with them on the program. They ended up coming out at a later date, viewed the fields, found some more fields, they again came out and did some more surveillance, found additional fields," said Richard Waszak, Cook County Forest Preserve Police.

They not only found marijuana plants, but generators and a campsite with supplies.

"They had an abundant amount of food at this location. I mean groceries that clearly they were going to be there for some time," said Olenkiewicz.

Investigators also uncovered a large fox hole that was dug near one of the planting areas.

Two men are now in custody. Twenty-three-year old Bernardo Rangel and 23-year-old Jose Verra are each charged with cultivating marijuana and criminal damage to land.

"They're damaging our property. This is a preserve. This particular is strictly a preserve. They come in and cut down, they come in and cut down areas making it a farm, when you see this, these plants are in rows, they're not just somebody throwing seeds," said

The Drug Enforcement Agency says it is seen other similar pot-growing operations recently across the country.

"This particular operation shows the sophistication of some drug traffickers. Instead of smuggling marijuana across the border or growing it inside a residence, trailer or business this drug organization set up shop on public property in the forest preserve where it was being cultivated for harvest and illegal distribution," said

Authorities estimate the marijuana was worth anywhere between $5 to $10 million on the street. Their investigation is continuing.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; News/Current Events; US: Illinois
KEYWORDS: aliens; drugcartel; immigration; mrleroymourns; potheads; wod
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-53 next last
To: dennisw

Safety tip: if you’re ever hiking in the boonies, and you come across an operation like this: run!

They’ll shoot you dead to protect their ‘crop’.


21 posted on 07/25/2007 6:58:33 AM PDT by Scourge of God (Remember, liberals, 'baaa' means NO!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: ChicagoConservative27

Dude, you need to find a new stash now, man!


22 posted on 07/25/2007 7:00:06 AM PDT by Sir Hailstone (I have two tickets to Hannity's Cincinnati Freedom Concert available.. FReepmail me for details)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

My mom always said when she was growing up marijuana grew wild all over suburban Chicago - and her horses loved eating it. ;)


23 posted on 07/25/2007 7:03:06 AM PDT by Mr. Jeeves ("Wise men don't need to debate; men who need to debate are not wise." -- Tao Te Ching)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: metesky
You’re confused. I think smoking as a habit is stupid. It will kill you, painfully. Smoking the occassional cigarette or joint is just rosy with me. All things in moderation, you see.

For what it’s worth, I think the WOSD is wrong. I think smoking bans are wrong. Before Georgia outlawed smoking in restaurants, I didn’t go to restaurants where I couldn’t escape the smoke. That’s my prerogative, just like it’s the restaurant owner’s prerogative to allow smoking.

So, even though I believe smoking is a stupid - STUPID - habit, I fully and completely defend your right to do it.

24 posted on 07/25/2007 7:05:13 AM PDT by T.Smith
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: T.Smith
Well then... As long as I have your seal of approval.
25 posted on 07/25/2007 7:07:46 AM PDT by metesky ("Brethren, leave us go amongst them." Rev. Capt. Samuel Johnston Clayton - Ward Bond- The Searchers)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]

To: metesky

Again, you’re confused. I’m offering an opinion. If you want to disagree with my opinion, go right ahead. So far, though, you haven’t done that. Honestly, you haven’t convinced me that you know how.

I’m not offering approval or disapproval. I’m only offering an opinion.


26 posted on 07/25/2007 7:13:46 AM PDT by T.Smith
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: Dick Bachert

I’m not ‘younger’ but if I’d been notified of the event, I’d have posistioned myself downwind too.


27 posted on 07/25/2007 7:23:12 AM PDT by toomuchcoffee
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

Just doing the job’s legal Americans won’t..........


28 posted on 07/25/2007 7:25:39 AM PDT by Osage Orange (The old/liberal/socialist media is the most ruthless and destructive enemy of this country.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: T.Smith

Wild wood weed....


29 posted on 07/25/2007 7:28:04 AM PDT by RedMonqey ( The truth is never PC)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: T.Smith

To post 24: I must cite the Ramponi Law. Quitting smoking can also kill you. Ramponi quit smoking at age 22. When working at UC on a construction project, someone stopped him on his way out of the building and ask him for a cigarette. Ramponi said he’d quit, walked off and was killed by a hammer, dropped from a scaffold above him. Now, had Ramponi not quit smoking, he’d have used the time he was killed in getting out a cigarette and then walking out of the building alive, to live to, possibly, 70 or so and then dying a stupid, painful death. Given the choice now, I’m certain Ramponi would have preferred not quitting smoking.


30 posted on 07/25/2007 7:30:07 AM PDT by toomuchcoffee
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]

To: T.Smith
If you want to disagree with my opinion, go right ahead. So far, though, you haven’t done that.

Now you're confused. I've done nothing but disagree with your opinions.

31 posted on 07/25/2007 7:32:22 AM PDT by metesky ("Brethren, leave us go amongst them." Rev. Capt. Samuel Johnston Clayton - Ward Bond- The Searchers)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: toomuchcoffee

Should be the Ramponi Hypothesis.

On the other hand, if Ramponi had never started smoking in the first place he might have been fleeter of foot and been out the door before the hammer fell.


32 posted on 07/25/2007 7:34:46 AM PDT by T.Smith
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 30 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

Many a good open borders cheap labor Republican lives in the toney Barrington area.


33 posted on 07/25/2007 7:34:59 AM PDT by junta (It's Jihad stupid! It's the borders stupid! It's Political Correctness stupid!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mr. Jeeves
My brother said it was growing wild on the side of the rural highway where he lived in Iowa in the 60’s. Van loads of hippies kept stopping and disrupting traffic so the sheriff went out to investigate. Needless to say they had a burn off there the next day - then the hippies quit coming. LOL!
34 posted on 07/25/2007 7:36:07 AM PDT by OB1kNOb (Support Duncan Hunter for the 2008 GOP presidential nominee. He will build the fence!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 23 | View Replies]

To: T.Smith

Yeah, you’re right. Ramponi was a wheezing, coughing wreck of a twenty two year old construction worker. Whatever was I thinking?


35 posted on 07/25/2007 7:48:37 AM PDT by toomuchcoffee
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 32 | View Replies]

To: junta
Many a good open borders cheap labor Republican lives in the toney Barrington area

BTW So does OPRAH!

36 posted on 07/25/2007 7:49:52 AM PDT by Don Corleone (Leave the gun..take the cannoli)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

To: toomuchcoffee
Oh, you were serious? I thought you were joking and I was responding in kind. If I were serious I would have wondered why he wasn’t wearing his hard hat if he was walking beneath a scaffolding at a construction site.
37 posted on 07/25/2007 7:51:08 AM PDT by T.Smith
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 35 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

What’s with the headline?

Is California supposed to be the only place where people do drugs, or something?


38 posted on 07/25/2007 7:53:07 AM PDT by highball ("I never should have switched from scotch to martinis." -- the last words of Humphrey Bogart)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

I sense a great disturbance in the force. It is as if millions of pot-smoking liberal’s heads exploded all at once.


39 posted on 07/25/2007 7:58:57 AM PDT by NavyCanDo
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Sir Hailstone

My bad.


40 posted on 07/25/2007 8:09:32 AM PDT by ChicagoConservative27
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-53 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson