TimH
09-13-2004, 06:41 PM
How much marijuana can be stuffed into the cabin of a 20-foot sailboat? About a million dollars' worth, according to investigators who searched an unmarked vessel found adrift in the shipping lanes off of Marrowstone Point on the evening of Sept. 1.
One of the investigators likened the unloading to a circus "clown car" as they removed bag after bag of marijuana after obtaining a search warrant.
The whereabouts of any suspects and the
owner of the burgundy and white Hamon 20 sailboat remain unknown. The hull bears no name and no vessel registration number, but based on undisclosed items found in the boat, investigators believe that it may be from Ontario, Canada.
The boat was spotted in the shipping lanes by the captain of the ferry Klickitat at 5:30 p.m. last Wednesday evening. The Coast Guard asked Vessel Assist to intercept the vessel and bring it to the Port of Port Townsend Boat Haven.
No one was onboard the vessel, and its anchor was not deployed, investigators said. There was a lot of wind in Port Townsend Bay in the 18 hours preceding the sighting of the boat, raising the possibility that the boat was not well-secured and simply drifted away from a mooring.
Unlike the way most sailboaters secure their sails, the boat's sails were not tightly and neatly secured in place.
Vessel Assist employees forced open the locked cabin in an effort to locate the boat's owner, but contacted the Coast Guard after unzipping one of the duffel bags and seeing marijuana wrapped in clear plastic. There was a total of 20 bags, and all appeared to be brand new.
Around 9 p.m., the Osprey crew contacted the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team (OPNET). Port Townsend Police and the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office are among the agencies that participate in OPNET's efforts to fight drug crimes on the peninsula..
Port Angeles Police Captain Ron Cameron of OPNET took charge of the on-scene investigation.
According to Cameron, the value of the marijuana could range from $2,000 per pound wholesale to $2,500 retail in Seattle or as much as $3,500 a pound retail in Los Angeles. At roughly 400 pounds, the stash could be worth $800,000 to $1.4 million..
OPNET, the Coast Guard and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security are involved in the ongoing investigation. Just four days earlier, OPNET arrested a person at the John Wayne Marina near Sequim for allegedly possessing nearly 200 pounds of "BC Bud," regarded as a high quality variety of marijuana.
One of the investigators likened the unloading to a circus "clown car" as they removed bag after bag of marijuana after obtaining a search warrant.
The whereabouts of any suspects and the
owner of the burgundy and white Hamon 20 sailboat remain unknown. The hull bears no name and no vessel registration number, but based on undisclosed items found in the boat, investigators believe that it may be from Ontario, Canada.
The boat was spotted in the shipping lanes by the captain of the ferry Klickitat at 5:30 p.m. last Wednesday evening. The Coast Guard asked Vessel Assist to intercept the vessel and bring it to the Port of Port Townsend Boat Haven.
No one was onboard the vessel, and its anchor was not deployed, investigators said. There was a lot of wind in Port Townsend Bay in the 18 hours preceding the sighting of the boat, raising the possibility that the boat was not well-secured and simply drifted away from a mooring.
Unlike the way most sailboaters secure their sails, the boat's sails were not tightly and neatly secured in place.
Vessel Assist employees forced open the locked cabin in an effort to locate the boat's owner, but contacted the Coast Guard after unzipping one of the duffel bags and seeing marijuana wrapped in clear plastic. There was a total of 20 bags, and all appeared to be brand new.
Around 9 p.m., the Osprey crew contacted the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team (OPNET). Port Townsend Police and the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office are among the agencies that participate in OPNET's efforts to fight drug crimes on the peninsula..
Port Angeles Police Captain Ron Cameron of OPNET took charge of the on-scene investigation.
According to Cameron, the value of the marijuana could range from $2,000 per pound wholesale to $2,500 retail in Seattle or as much as $3,500 a pound retail in Los Angeles. At roughly 400 pounds, the stash could be worth $800,000 to $1.4 million..
OPNET, the Coast Guard and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security are involved in the ongoing investigation. Just four days earlier, OPNET arrested a person at the John Wayne Marina near Sequim for allegedly possessing nearly 200 pounds of "BC Bud," regarded as a high quality variety of marijuana.