Pubdate: Thu, 27 Jul 2006 Source: Central Virginian, The (VA) Copyright: 2006 by The CV Corporation of Virginia Contact: http://www.thecentralvirginian.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2057 Author: Greg Dorazio Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?237 (Drug Dogs) RECORD BREAKING BUST The Louisa County Sheriff's Office finished some overdue yard work at Geoffrey Cummings' Mt. Airy Road home last Wednesday, cutting the grass and pulling a whole lot of weeds. In the largest marijuana manufacturing bust in the county's history, the LCSO, with the assistance of other agencies, seized 352 marijuana plants from four fields on Cummings' 30-acre property. Officers also recovered a firearm and evidence that may connect Cummings to the cultivation of the fields, including a shovel, transplanting bins, and a hose which was hooked up to the home's water supply. With the street value of each plant estimated at $2,500 after processing, the total value of the bust is in excess of $850,000. "That's a lot of marijuana,"said Major Donald A. Lowe, LCSO. "I think it's safe to say that this is definitely going to put a dent in some of the marijuana trafficking around the county." The 52-year-old Cummings has been charged with two felonies, manufacture of marijuana and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He is scheduled to appear in Louisa County General District Court on November 11, at 11 a.m. Cummings is already set for a September 11 trial on eleven unrelated counts of contributing to the delinquency of minors. Police and prosecutors allege that he hosted a party at his residence this spring, providing alcohol to minors. "We fly over the county and we look for hot spots during the growing season," said Lowe of the regular eradication efforts. "This was an area that we wanted to check when we did a fly-over, and it panned out." Once law enforcement made a visual recognition of what appeared to be marijuana, Lowe said they "sent in the ground units." "At the time that they made entry on the property, we had one individual [Cummings] that was exiting the house and had a shoe box in hand," Lowe explained. The shoe box was full of what appeared to be marijuana seeds and a small amount of smokable marijuana, which will be sent to the crime lab for analysis. Eradication is a cooperative effort. A total of 20 officers from the Louisa County Narcotics Task Force, Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, Virginia State Police, Fluvanna County Sheriff's Office, the Governor's Initiative Against Narcotics Trafficking, and the Virginia Air National Guard all took part in the effort. "It's a good joint working group," Lowe said, with no pun intended. "Everybody gets together all for a single purpose, and everybody has an expertise in one area or another." Make that 21 officers. The LCSO's youngest officer, the rookie bloodhound Maggie, started her career off with a bang as she established that Cummings' scent was present around the plants and on cultivation equipment. "This is her first case, and she was able to identify our suspect's presence in one of the fields," Lowe said. "We're very proud of Patrick and Maggie." LCSO Sgt. Patrick Sheridan said that Maggie had just completed her training in Loudoun County, and was pleased that the hard work he and Maggie have put in is already paying off. The scent evidence established by the K-9 unit could prove to be extremely important in court. "You have to show knowledge of [the marijuana plants], and then you have to show where [the suspect] was actually tending to it," said Lowe of making a strong case. Demonstrating a suspect's effort to cultivate, feed or water the plants is crucial to proving a charge of manufacture of marijuana, Lowe explained. That evidence helps rule out situations where someone stumbles across a field or where marijuana is grown on a property without the landowner's knowledge. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom