© 2024 KOSU
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Oklahoma task force seizes 36 tons of illegal marijuana

Approximately 36 tons of cannabis was seized from a Wagoner County op
Wagoner County Sheriff's Office
Approximately 36 tons of cannabis was seized from a Wagoner County operation last week.

The Oklahoma Attorney General’s office says it is among the largest marijuana seizures in state history.

The Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF) found about 72,000 pounds of black-market marijuana inside a metal barn on Nov. 9 in Wagoner County.

Attorney General Gentner Drummond created the task force this year to crack down on illegal marijuana operations. The task force conducted the search and other organizations such as the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Wagoner County Sheriff’s Office and the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority helped.

Phil Bacharach, director of communications for the attorney general’s office, said no arrests have been made, and the task force is continuing its investigation.

Robert Melton, an assistant special agent in charge of HSI Dallas, Oklahoma and Texas Panhandle Division, said in a statement the work the task force is doing is necessary.

“Operations like these led by the OCTF help curtail the spread of other nefarious activities such as human trafficking and money laundering that often lead to even more dangerous transnational crime,” Melton said.

Later in the day, agents inspected a Lincoln County medical marijuana grow facility, where agents found untagged cannabis. That led to a search and agents obtained 250 pounds of illegal marijuana.

Oklahoma officials say the large amount of cannabis grown here fuels the black markets of other states.


Sign up for The KOSU Daily newsletter!

Get the latest Oklahoma news in your inbox every weekday morning.

* indicates required

Anna Pope is a reporter covering agriculture and rural issues at KOSU as a corps member with Report for America.
KOSU is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.
Related Content