Deputies Uncover Illicit Marijuana Grow in Vacant Barstow Home After Electricity-Theft Report; About 365 Plants Uprooted, Man Arrested
San Bernardino County — Barstow is a city in San Bernardino County, California. An investigation into electricity theft led deputies to an illicit marijuana grow inside a vacant Barstow home on Friday night, October 16, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department said. The incident began at about 10:25 p.m., when deputies responded to the area of Church Avenue and L Street after a report of suspicious circumstances involving a male operating a lift while working on a power line without any visible warning lights or traffic cones.
Deputies contacted the man and found freshly cut wiring, along with what appeared to be an electrical bypass from a power line on Church Street routed to a nearby vacant home, the department said in a written statement. Inside, deputies found power lines routed to each room of the home, along with fertilizer, lighting systems and other items indicating a possible marijuana grow; a tampered electrical panel was also found, and there was a strong odor of marijuana coming from the garage. The Sheriff's Marijuana Enforcement Team then served a warrant at the home and uprooted roughly 365 marijuana plants. Southern California Edison confirmed its equipment had been tampered with and power was being stolen. Jose Luis Baez Burgos, 36, a Mexican national, was arrested on suspicion of theft of utilities, according to county booking records, and was released on bail pending legal proceedings.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Barstow 车站（Barstow Station）外观，Barstow 市地标建筑。照片：Joe Wu，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。Photo: Barstow Station, a Barstow landmark. Photo by Joe Wu, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
