Hickory man accused of growing marijuana in Caldwell County warehouse
Authorities arrested a Hickory man after finding a marijuana growing operation in a Caldwell County warehouse.
Ryan Michael Few, 29, was charged with felony manufacturing marijuana. He was arrested without incident in Catawba County.
The case began in December when investigators obtained a warrant to search a warehouse in Hudson and found 62 marijuana plants along with marijuana growing equipment, Sheriff Alan Jones said Friday.
Investigators recovered fingerprints and sent them to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation forensic lab. The fingerprints matched Few’s, Jones said.
The plants have an estimated street value of $155,000 and the equipment is worth about $20,000, according to the sheriff.
“This was not an overnight set up,” Jones said in a news release. “This was a calculated and thoroughly planned operation. If left unchecked, it would have produced many pounds of high grade marijuana.”
Joe Marusak: 704-358-5067, @jmarusak
This story was originally published July 15, 2016 at 11:58 AM with the headline "Hickory man accused of growing marijuana in Caldwell County warehouse."