LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — Federal agents spent Tuesday cleaning out equipment and paraphernalia from three suspected marijuana grow houses in in Lake County.
Drug Enforcement Agency and local deputies raided the home in the Astatula, Sorrento and Mount Dora areas.
Video from Skywitness 9 HD shows agents cutting down and packing what appeared to be 5-foot tall marijuana plants from the suspected operation in Mount Dora. Other agents can be seen taking a sledgehammer to a homemade electrical panel.
Officials told WFTV growers often bypass power company equipment to steal power for grow lamps and cooling, and to stay under the radar.
"We thought they were hunting for somebody they couldn't find," said witness Bill Meyers. "We didn't know they were hunting for a grow house."
Inside the Astatula-area home, agents found 1,000-watt grow lamp packages, fertilizer and a fan. They also confiscated drugs that were found in the home.
Bill Benham, the owner of the property, said he was somewhat suspicious but claims the renters' credit report checked out, and they always paid their rent on time.
Benham said agents had been watching the house for about a year.
“The original story was that they were a drywall contractor,” said Benham. “They had a large amount of work in Orlando. They came over (from Cuba) a year and a half to two years ago.”
The DEA wouldn't say whether there have been arrests. They said search warrants are still sealed.
WFTV
