Pubdate: Sun, 21 Jun 2015
Source: Tampa Tribune (FL)
Copyright: 2015 The Tribune Co.
Contact: http://tbo.com/list/news-opinion-letters/submit/
Website: http://tbo.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/446
Author: Elizabeth Behrman, Tribune staff
Page: A1

GROW HOUSES SPROUT IN HILLSBOROUGH

Sheriff On Pace For More Marijuana Busts Than In 2014

TAMPA - There are a number of signs that a house is being used to 
grow a marijuana crop.

The windows are always covered or the blinds are always closed, 
deputies say. There might be more than one air-conditioning unit. 
People may be coming and going at odd hours from a house that 
otherwise seems unoccupied.

If someone gets that 'gut feeling,' as many neighbors do, that 
something just isn't right, they can alert the police to the 
potential grow house, said J.R. Burton, a major with the Hillsborough 
County Sheriff's Office.

The agency already has busted 18 grow house operations this year. 
Deputies have collected 583 marijuana plants, collectively worth more 
than $1.1 million.

'I think there's a lot more out there than anyone realizes,' Burton said.

Law enforcement in Hillsborough County shut down 29 indoor grow 
operations in 2014, the second highest number in the state, according 
to a Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services report 
on the state's Domestic Marijuana Eradication Program. Miami-Dade 
County took the top spot with 124 busts.

Marijuana operations aren't a new phenomenon in Hillsborough. The 
sheriff's office started to crack down on grow houses in earnest 
years ago. In 2008, a joint sting operation with the Manatee County 
Sheriff's Office netted about 3,200 pounds of marijuana and 70 
arrests in six months.

Investigators rely on tips from neighbors of these operations but 
also do a lot of proactive work undercover, Burton said. Sometimes, 
tips come from the Tampa Electric Co., which watches for telltale 
signs that the growers have tapped into power lines illegally.

Cherie Jacobs, a TECO spokeswoman, said the company probably sees a 
grow house case every week.

'We have put an emphasis on grow houses for a number of years,' Burton said.

Deputies have found more and more grow houses in suburban areas over 
the years. Where there are grow houses, Burton said, there is the 
potential for violent crime.

In May, deputies responded to a Brandon home, where they found a man 
dead after a report of a fight. In the home, they also found a grow 
house operation, leading them to believe the motive for the killing 
was drug-related. Last week, deputies found a grow house after they 
smelled marijuana while responding to a domestic disturbance call.

'All this is taking place in a residential neighborhood,' Burton 
said. 'That is frightening for us.' The Tampa Police Department has 
busted some grow houses this year as well, although the numbers 
weren't immediately available, spokeswoman Andrea Davis said.

Officers don't see them as frequently as the sheriff's office does, 
probably because they aren't as common in urban areas, she said.

'Neighbors tend to notice signs of things like grow houses in 
neighborhoods,' she said. 'The houses are much closer together.' Once 
detectives find a grow house, they reach out to TECO to calculate how 
much electricity is being used to power the operation. Most of the 
time, the suspects also are charged with utility theft, Burton said.

TECO will tip off detectives if they find suspicious line hookup, 
Jacobs said. Some TECO employees receive special train ing so they 
know what to look for.

Thieves will hook into the power line ahead of the meter so TECO's 
system doesn't record the usage and therefore isn't flagged when a 
home's electric bill suddenly jumps hundreds of dollars compared with 
its neighbors.

'These are folks that are working around the system so that they're 
not drawing attention to themselves,' Jacobs said.

Almost every time when deputies bust a grow house and later ask 
neighbors about it, they are told they thought something seemed 'off' 
but they couldn't be sure, Burton said. Often, the neighborhood will 
notice the seemingly large and unfinished 'remodel' of a home or 
strange cars parked in the driveway at all hours. But they can't be 
sure and don't want to cause trouble for their neighbor, Burton said.

Still, a number of the busts this year have resulted from anonymous 
tips received through Crime Stoppers.

'This is the norm for us,' Burton said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom