Raids On Illegal Marijuana Operators Continue In Lake Elsinore

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — Three days of raids on residences in Lake Elsinore uncovered indoor marijuana grows in six different homes, resulting in arrests, authorities said.

According to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, the most recent drug-related search warrant was served Wednesday in the 41000 block of Hatton Garden Court, where deputies shut down an indoor cultivation site and seized more than 20 pounds of processed weed.

No one was arrested at the house, where the "electrical system had been illegally altered, causing a severe fire hazard," sheriff's Sgt. Glenn Warrington said.

The property was targeted for investigation after neighbors complained about suspected drug activity, Warrington said, adding that similar complaints drew deputies' attention to two other properties.

On Tuesday, search warrants were served at those two houses — one in the 45000 block of Carla Court, and the other in the 53000 block of Astrid Way.

Warrington said that inside the Carla Court house, 654 cannabis plants in various stages of growth were seized.

"The home was transformed into a marijuana cultivation site," the sergeant said.

Weije Zhen, 26, of Lake Elsinore was arrested on suspicion of illegal cultivation of a controlled substance. He was booked into the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta but was released on his own recognizance a short time later.

At the Astrid Way property, deputies discovered evidence of an alleged illegal grow, with damaged electrical circuits and other alterations that left "the house uninhabitable," Warrington said.

No cannabis plants were seized. However, 47-year-old Junha Ye tried to flee from the property but was quickly apprehended, Warrington said.

The suspect was booked into the Robert Presley Jail on suspicion of illegal cultivation of a controlled substance but posted a $5,000 bond and was released from custody hours later.

The investigations are ongoing, according to Warrington.

The raids follow the takedown last week by sheriff's deputies of an illegal marijuana business operating out of three Lake Elsinore residences. Homes in the 40900 block of Diana Lane, 41000 block of Crimson Pillar Lane and 29300 block of Royal Aberdeen were all raided by deputies on April 24. Read more about the bust here.

—City News Service contributed to this report.