Black market marijuana is at the center of a major crime bust in Oklahoma, and the attorney general said he wants to see the industry gone.
Black market marijuana is at the center of a major crime bust in Oklahoma, and the attorney general said he wants to see the industry gone.
Black market marijuana is at the center of a major crime bust in Oklahoma, and the attorney general said he wants to see the industry gone.
Black market marijuana is at the center of a major crime bust in Oklahoma, and the attorney general said he wants to see the industry gone.
On Tuesday, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond announced the results of Operation Blunt Force, a major bust of a criminal organization involved in black market marijuana across eight states. Drummond said he wants to eliminate the marijuana industry from Oklahoma, aligning with Gov. Kevin Stitt’s comments during Monday’s State of the State address.
“As a lawyer, I’m concerned about the taking. As a law enforcement officer, I’d love for it to be gone,” Drummond said.
>> Video Below: ‘We crushed it’: Midwest City strip mall swept up in multistate marijuana raid
The operation led to the arrest of Hao Chen, identified as the leader of the criminal enterprise that spans across eight states.
“This criminal enterprise is responsible for more than $1.5 billion of illegal black-market marijuana, money laundering and other racketeering activity, and we didn’t stop there. Over the next seven hours that Thursday, we arrested 11 more syndication leaders across multiple states, and then on Friday, we arrested eight Oklahomans,” Drummond said.
Law enforcement served one of the 50 search warrants at Everglow Lighting in Midwest City, identified as one of 20 fronts operated by the crime ring. Nearby businesses had been suspicious of the activities for months.
“Something that just does not seem right, and it hasn’t seemed right for months,” said Danielle Newhouse, an employee at Heritage Plaza.
>> Video Below: Oklahoma AG: Operation leads to arrests of 20 people linked to drug trafficking enterprise
Nineteen individuals now face charges for racketeering and conspiracy to defraud the state, while 17 are charged with offering a forged instrument for record, related to false information provided in medical marijuana applications across nine farms. Additionally, there are four separate counts of aggravated manufacturing of a dangerous substance, specifically marijuana.
Chen faces further charges for unlawful proceeds and engaging in a pattern of offenses.
He is currently incarcerated at Rikers Island in New York, while at least 13 others arrested have bonded out.
Drummond assured that law enforcement is closely monitoring the situation as the case progresses.
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