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Man pleads guilty for ‘large-scale marijuana cultivation’ in Big Sur wilderness
The U.S. Attorney’s Office of Northern California announced that a Mexican national was convicted for his part in an illegal marijuana cultivation site in the Big Sur area. Jacinto Correa Cruz, 56, pleaded guilty to one count of depredation against federal lands and one count of manufacture of, and possession with intent to manufacture and distribute, marijuana plants, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Correa Cruz agreed to a plea deal and admitted to damaging federal property by participating in illegal marijuana production in the Los Padres National Forest located in the Ventana Wilderness area. Correa Cruz was arrested in July 2022 at a “large-scale marijuana cultivation complex” on two plots of land that had been cleared of native vegetation, per court documents. There were around 10,000 marijuana plants at the facility. A camp area was also found with a tent, 15 sleeping bags and a kitchen with thousands of pounds of trash and dead animal parts.”Significant quantities of hazardous materials and chemicals were also found on site. The illegal marijuana grow also had an irrigation system with two large water structures fed by a hose that was diverting water from a natural source,” said a media release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. “An environmental damage assessment found that the illegal operation diverted and used approximately 33,780 gallons of water a day in an area that was experiencing severe drought conditions.”Highly toxic chemicals were found in the soil and water such as carbofuran, methamidophos and diphacinone.The cost to restore the area is over $92,540 per site for a year. “Jacinto Correa Cruz helped poison the pristine lands of the Los Padres National Forest,” said Federal Bureau of Investigation San Francisco Special Agent in Charge Robert Tripp. “He now stands accountable for the damage that will take years to heal. We will continue to stand firm with our federal, state, and local partners to keep our lands safe and prevent further depredation.”He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 4, 2025, and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison for each offense. He also faces a restitution fine of $1 million. See more coverage of top Central Coast stories here ]] The U.S. Attorney’s Office of Northern California announced that a Mexican national was convicted for his part in an illegal marijuana cultivation site in the Big Sur area. Read More
