Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office investigators discovered a large marijuana grow house, in Plant City, after responding to a burglary in progress.
According to Sheriff’s Office reports, at about 11:42 a.m. March 7, deputies responded to a burglary in progress at 6608 Knights Griffin Road. A witness reported seeing a van drop two men off at the residence and then drive away.
When deputies arrived, they discovered fresh pry marks on the rear of a shed. K-9 deputies then tracked and located two suspects, Yunel Hernandez-Carrera and Leonardo Benito Catala. Both were arrested without incident. Patrol deputies located the van nearby and later arrested driver Yenisleidy Moreno-Morgan in connection with the other two males involved.
During the search of a detached garage, detectives discovered it had been converted for the sole purpose of cultivating marijuana. A total of 66 large marijuana plants growing inside soil-filled pots were seized, along with several pieces of equipment used to manufacture marijuana. TECO responded and located an illegal electricity connection providing unmetered electricity to the garage and estimates the theft of electricity at about $10,000.
The marijuana had a total weight of 220, pounds with an estimated street value of $265,000.
Detectives arrested the tenant, Luis Alvarez-Alonso, and charged him with trafficking marijuana; manufacture of marijuana; own, lease or rent for the purpose of trafficking; and third-degree grand theft (electricity).
Catala, of Pembroke Pines, and Hernandez-Carrera and Moreno-Morgan, both of Miami, were charged with possession of burglary tools and burglary of an unoccupied structure.