On 5 and 6 October 2026, deputies with the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Marijuana Enforcement Team served search warrants at two illegal cannabis grows in southern Humboldt County: one in the Rancho Sequoia Road area of Alderpoint and one in the Sawmill Road area of Garberville.[1][2] The California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the California Department of Cannabis Control assisted in the operation.[1][2] The sheriff’s office said the properties were identified through aerial surveillance and lacked the required county permits and state licences for commercial cultivation.[1][2]
Deputies eradicated about 3,102 cannabis plants and destroyed about 36 pounds (about 16.3 kg) of processed cannabis while serving the warrants.[1][2] At one property they found substandard living conditions where workers were believed to be staying, conditions the office said can indicate labour exploitation; no one was present when the warrants were served.[1][2]
No arrests were made during the operation, and the investigations will be forwarded to the District Attorney’s Office for review.[1][2] The sheriff’s office asks anyone with information about these investigations to call its tip lines.[1]
