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Press Release

Mexican National Indicted for Growing Marijuana in Shasta-Trinity National Forest

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of California

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment today against Jaime Alejandro Sanchez Robles, 33, of Mexico, charging him with conspiracy to manufacture marijuana, manufacture of marijuana, and depredation of public lands and resources, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Oct. 20, 2022, law enforcement officers went to a marijuana growing operation in a remote area of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest located in Trinity County. At the grow, agents observed that water was actively being diverted from a nearby stream, and they found the remnants of over 1,200 pounds of soluble fertilizer, 20 gallons of liquid fertilizer, over 50 pounds of rodenticide, and at least one dead animal. Law enforcement officers eradicated 1,708 marijuana plants and arrested Sanchez Robles.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Forest Service, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office. Integral Ecology Research Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the research and conservation of wildlife and their ecosystems, analyzed and documented the environmental damage. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alstyn Bennett is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Sanchez Robles faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Updated November 17, 2022

Topics
Drug Trafficking
Environment