UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Federal and local officials participated in an operation this week in Upper Lake that resulted in the eradication of hundreds of marijuana plants.
The daylong operation was carried out at the Vann Ranch, located off Elk Mountain Road, beginning early Tuesday morning.
The ranch is owned by Jose Fernandez, 57, known locally as “Hippy Joe.”
Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman Casey Rettig told Lake County News that the DEA served a federal search warrant.
She said the DEA was assisted by the Internal Revenue Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; US Forest Service; California Department of Fish and Wildlife; and the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Rettig said no arrests were made.
“The search warrant is under court seal. The investigation is ongoing,” she said.
Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office confirmed to Lake County News that the agency assisted the operation, but didn't initiate it.
As of Friday afternoon, Brooks hadn't received a final report of how many plants had been eradicated.
He said he had received estimates of between 500 and 1,000 plants cut down during the search warrant services.
In a Friday interview with Lake County News, Fernandezsaid there were 11 gardens, each with about 48 plants, on his 1,500-acre ranch. That totals approximately 528 plants.
“I'm just really frustrated,” Fernandez said.
Over the years, Fernandez has become known for contributing to the community, including paying to repaint the Odd Fellows Hall in downtown Upper Lake, holding fundraisers at his ranch – including the May “Fire in the Barn” event – and raising money for the town clock and computers for local schools.
Upper Lake Union Elementary Principal/Superintendent Valerie Gardner acknowledged Fernandez's donation of 15 iPads to the district in a July letter: http://bit.ly/1uAONro .
He said he believes he's being targeted by Sheriff Frank Rivero, who Fernandez has publicly opposed.
Fernandez supported the failed recall effort against Rivero last year and campaigned against him in the run up to the spring primary election, in which voters ousted the one-term sheriff.
He said he has contracts with medical marijuana patients, including disabled veterans, to cover the gardens.
Fernandez, who said he is a disabled veteran, also grows marijuana for his own medical use. He said he prefers it to prescription drugs to deal with grand mal seizures he suffers as a result of a head injury and post traumatic stress disorder from his time in the military.
The operation at his ranch began at around 6 a.m. Tuesday, after Fernandez had left to feed cattle.
He said the agents arrived to find his girlfriend and their 13-month-old daughter. His girlfriend was put in handcuffs – and left that way for hours – and water was cut off to their house, with a residence on the property and his new barn being red-tagged.
The agents cut down every garden, which he maintained were all legal based on medical marijuana recommendations, Fernandez said.
Law enforcement officials left at around 5 p.m. that day, before Fernandez returned home.
In September 2012, Fernandez also was the focus of a raid that resulted in his arrest, the arrests of several other individuals, the eradication of more than 1,100 marijuana plants, the discovery of a hash conversion lab, and the seizure of cash and several pieces of equipment, including a bulldozer, tractor, utility vehicle, dump bed trailer and commercial grade electric generator, as Lake County News has reported.
The lab, some of the plants and equipment reportedly did not belong to Fernandez.
In that case, the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force served the warrants with the assistance of the DEA and a number of federal, state and local agencies.
Fernandez was arrested during that raid for felony conspiracy, possession of marijuana for sale and marijuana cultivation.
He said none of his equipment has ever been returned.
However, District Attorney Don Anderson said Fernandez hasn't yet filed a claim for his property, which should have been done within 30 days of the seizure. Anderson said his office is waiting to see what the DEA will do before pursuing asset forfeiture proceedings.
Anderson said the criminal case against Fernandez resulting from the September 2012 search warrant service hasn't moved forward, but is still pending.
“It hasn't been dropped, it's just under review,” Anderson said, explaining that his office is waiting for additional information from the DEA and the sheriff's office.
Cases involving local and federal agencies can take more time, Anderson said.
In this latest case, federal and local officials have not indicated if further action will be taken against Fernandez.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.