WEOTT-  On May 9, 2016, California State Park Rangers, raided an illegal marijuana grow in Humboldt Redwoods State Park that contained thousands of marijuana seedling plants, an assault rifle with hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and toxic chemicals.

Three armed suspects in a nearby illegal camp near Bull Creek fled on foot when law enforcement officers approached.. The three suspects remain at large.

At the illegal grow site and camp, rangers recovered an MK99-type assault rifle and found a highly toxic pesticides. Approximately 2,000 seedling marijuana plants were removed.

Twenty acres of State Park land had been illegally cleared of native vegetation. The marijuana plants were watered directly from water diverted from the tributaries of Bull Creek.

Forty cubic yards of trash, fertilizers, pesticides, water hoses, hazardous material and other supplies were removed from the area. Disposal costs were paid for in part with assistance from the Humboldt County Public Works’ “Measure Z” public safety funding.

The marijuana grow and camp was found within a quarter-mile of pristine old-growth redwood forest. Rangers were assisted by the California National Guard, California Highway Patrol, California Department of Fish and Wildlife and Lear Asset Management. A team from the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps assisted with trash removal.