The Lane County Sheriff's Office executed multiple search warrants at locations in Eugene and Troutdale on Wednesday as part of a months-long investigation into illegal marijuana cultivation and THC manufacturing.
Deputies served warrants at a home in the 2000 block of Musket Street in Eugene, a home in the 1600 block of Taney Street in Eugene, a warehouse near the intersection of W. 11th Avenue and Arrowsmith Street in Eugene and a home in the 800 block of SW Grant Way in Troutdale.
According to the Sheriff's Office, investigators determined the warehouse contained an unlicensed manufacturing facility and the operators were illegally selling products outside of Oregon.
THC extraction labs are dangerous and can result in catastrophic and deadly explosions, officials said. Authorities disabled the lab and found large containers of flammable and acidic liquids, some of which had spilled.
The Eugene Springfield Fire Department assisted with handling hazardous materials.
The sheriff's office was assisted on this case by the Douglas Interagency Narcotics Team, Oregon State Police, Drug Enforcement Administration and the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, officials said. The investigation was supported by grant funding from the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission's Illegal Marijuana Market Grant, which was created by the Oregon legislature in 2018 to assist local law enforcement agencies and district attorneys in their efforts to address the illegal marijuana market in Oregon.
