It's pretty common these days for robbers to target homes where marijuana is being grown. A home in San Bruno, California growing 800 marijuana plants was robbed Friday April 29, 2011.
It all began when neighbors heard loud banging coming from the women's home on Valleywood Drive, nestled in between Skyline Boulevard and Interstate 280.
Then they saw two men, later identified as Kitae Chae, 38, and Kenny Kong, 34, breaking down the front door and lingering inside for a few minutes before driving off in a BMW.
The neighbors called police, and officers who stopped the BMW in South San Francisco found the men with $12,000 in cash, marijuana packaging material and seven ecstasy pills.
When they arrived at the Valleywood Drive home, investigators found a substantial pot-growing operation: more than 800 marijuana plants, $3,000 in cash and a bypass through which electricity was being stolen from Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
Officers arrested the occupants; 72-year-old Aleen Lam and Virginia Chan Pon, 65. It's not Pon's first run-in with the law: She is already facing charges in Yolo County for allegedly passing more than $40,000 in bad checks over a three-day period at Cache Creek Casino.
The two women face a variety of drug charges, and Chae and Kong are accused of drug and
burglary counts. All four have pleaded not guilty and are being held at San Mateo County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail each.
Large-scale federal marijuana growing-operations charges are serious and carry severe consequences. As a federal offense, your case would be handled in the federal court system, which places strict sentencing guidelines on convictions. It is important that you retain a lawyer who has experience trying cases at the federal level.
Burglary
Burglary is typically defined as the unlawful entry into almost any structure (not just a home or business) with the intent to commit any crime inside (not just theft/larceny). No physical breaking and entering is required; the offender may simply trespass through an open door. Unlike robbery, which involves use of force or fear to obtain another person's property, there is usually no victim present during a burglary.
Possible Penalties for Burglary
•Jail Time
•Probation and electronic monitoring
•Fines and court costs
At Hedding Law Firm we understand the federal court system inside and out and have dealt with thousands of criminal cases ranging from
drug possession to
burglary to
robbery to
murder as well as
white collar offenses. We will evaluate your case from every angle to determine the best course of action.
Contact us at
Hedding Law Firm for a FREE face to face consultation