KELSEYVILLE – Two Ukiah men were arrested last week after deputies discovered them camping among illicit marijuana garden sites.
Jaime Padilla Busio, 31, and his brother, 37-year-old Benjamin Padilla Busio, were arrested on the morning of June 24, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Bauman said two deputies assigned to special enforcement were conducting surveillance on June 24 on two marijuana grow sites identified a week prior during a helicopter over flight in the Kelsey Creek area of Kelseyville.
After locating two additional grow sites in the area, the deputies found a camp among the grows occupied by the brothers. Bauman said both men were arrested without incident.
During their surveillance, deputies counted and later eradicated a total of 9,209 marijuana plants from four different grow sites maintained by the two men, according to Bauman's reported.
The men had diverted water from Kelsey Creek and dammed the water in some places, and Bauman said bags of fertilizer also were located throughout the creek’s watershed area.
A dead black bear also was located near one of the grow sites, Bauman said. Although the animal appeared to have been dead for only about a week, neither of the men claimed knowledge of how it died.
The Busios were booked at the Lake County Jail on felony charges of cultivating marijuana and possession of marijuana for sale. Bauman said they also were charged with misdemeanor Fish and Game violations relating to diverting and polluting natural water resources.
He said both men remain in custody on a bail of $10,000 each and both have immigration holds in place.
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