Sheriff Dept press release re: Copperopolis Marijuana Grow - eradication nets 3700 plants

On 7-10-2014 Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to the Copperopolis area for a report of an unknown subject stealing water. Initial investigation indicated that the water theft was linked to a nearby marijuana growing operation.

The Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol conducted a joint operation to eradicate the illegal marijuana grow. During the operation the team located a male subject who fled from the grow site. The male subject was later identified as Edgar Lopez. Edgar Lopez was later located in some brush and subsequently arrested. The Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol eradicated and destroyed over 3,700 marijuana plants. Per Edgar Lopez, he estimated that each plant would produce marijuana with a street value of over $1,000 per plant.

Edgar Lopez was booked on charges of illegal cultivation of marijuana bail $20,000.