Pubdate: Sat, 04 Nov 2006 Source: Concord Monitor (NH) Copyright: 2006 Monitor Publishing Company Contact: http://www.concordmonitor.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/767 Author; Walter Alarkon Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/grow+operations POWER DRAIN LEADS POLICE TO POT BUST Nearly 1,400 Marijuana Plants Found In the biggest marijuana bust in the state's history, the police found nearly 1,400 marijuana plants worth up to $7 million inside a vacant Epsom house Thursday. The police brought 1,396 plants out of the basement at 35 Woodcote Drive, the state police said. They also seized grow lights, tools, industrial fans and transformer boxes used to divert electricity to the house, the police said. Aside from the basement and closets full of equipment, the rest of the house was empty, said Sgt. Ellen Arcieri of the New Hampshire State Police. Investigators have made no arrests and have no suspects, Arcieri said. Neighbors said that the ranch-style house was recently sold by David and Tracy Menard. Sheets had been placed over the windows on the inside, said Jessica Towne, who also lives on Woodcote Drive. Towne said she hadn't met or seen much of the new owner, who occasionally stopped by the house in a sedan, she said. Andy and Lisa Fries, who live across from Woodcote Drive on Center Hill Road, said the Menards had closed the sale on Oct. 23 and planned to move to Pittsfield. The house was sold for about $450,000, the Fries said. The police discovered the plants because of a blackout at Towne's house. Towne said she lost power Wednesday and called the power company, Unitil. The company then discovered that 35 Woodcote Drive was using an inordinate amount of electricity, Towne said. "They were sucking so much electricity, they were using more electricity than Wal-mart," she said, repeating what a Unitil official told her. The power company reported to the police that the house was draining electricity, Arcieri said. The police searched the house Thursday evening, around 6 p.m., and found the marijuana plants, Arcieri said. Members of the New Hampshire State Police, the Epsom police and the New Hampshire National Guard spent about eight hours gathering evidence at the house Thursday night. The Epsom Fire Department set up floodlights and generators at the scene, since Unitil had shut off the electricity, Fire Chief Stewart Yeaton said. The police and guardsmen filled a box truck and two Humvees with the evidence and didn't leave until after midnight, Arcieri said. The basement would have been able to support 4,000 plants, Arcieri said. Closets held unused transformers, light bulbs, power cords, sump pumps, and hundreds of empty plant buckets, she said. The plants had yet to mature, but each would have been worth between $3,000 and $5,000, she said. The equipment was worth about $200,000. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin