Authorities Destroy More Than 32,000 Marijuana Plants Growing In Nowata County

By Jeffrey Smith, The News On 6

NOWATA COUNTY -- Nowata County Sheriff's Office deputies found a hidden marijuana farm stocked with more than 32,000 plants on Saturday.

The Nowata County Sheriff's Office reports it is the biggest marijuana farm they've ever seen. There are roughly three acres of pot plants there. Just to give you an idea of how deep in the country it is, even when Sheriff's deputies got the tip, it still took them several days to locate the actual marijuana plants.

The farm is way off the beaten path, in the middle of 12,000 acres of public hunting land off County Road 420, near Oologah Lake.

A turkey hunter called in the tip last week.

5/1/2010  Related Story: Thousands Of Marijuana Plants Discovered In Nowata County

Firefighters, sheriff's deputies, even the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are helping pluck the marijuana. There are 32,166 plants. Some deputies can't believe their eyes.

"It's just wild to think that somebody would try to grow this much marijuana in our county," said Deputy Jay Long, Nowata County.

When authorities discovered the plants Saturday night, five men, all dressed in camouflage, escaped into the woods.

Nowata County Undersheriff Doug Sonenberg says the farmers knew what they were doing.

"They had some pumps to pump out water. They dammed up creeks in here so they could get water to the plants. So yeah, it was a pretty sophisticated grow they got going on here," said Sonenberg.

Deputy Long says busting the pot farm is one of the highlights of his career.

"Even if its marijuana, it's still illegal," said Long.

Investigators are picking the pot plants, tallying them and then burning them all where they were grown.