$500,000 Worth of Pot Found

Sheriff’s deputies said Thursday that they had found about $500,000 worth of marijuana during a search of a cellar that was equipped with a high-tech growing system and a labyrinth of trap doors and tunnels.

Besides finding marijuana stored in large plastic bags, officials said, they discovered plants growing under heat lamps.

A resident of the house, John Moreaux, was arrested on suspicion of possession and cultivation of marijuana, and also on suspicion of illegal possession of a firearm, according to Det. Ed Nordskog of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Moreaux was held at the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station pending formal charges.

The arrest came after a 10-month investigation that started with a tip from northern California police officials, Nordskog said.

“The guy is supposed to be one of the best in the state at growing pot,” said Nordskog, one of the arresting officers. “He built a complete apparatus for growing a high-grade super marijuana.”

During a media tour of the house, situated in the 17000 block of Forrest Street, Nordskog showed reporters a maze of tunnels that were linked to the upper part of the house by trap doors hidden in closets and bathrooms.

Nordskog also showed reporters large carbon dioxide tanks and heat lamps that were allegedly used by Moreaux to hasten the growth of the marijuana plants.

“He was trying to create a climate like a jungle in Mexico,” Nordskog said. “They can grow the plants in three months, instead of the usual nine, using this kind of equipment.”