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Quarterly financial. statements on record with. the city showed tl~e Collective took in <br />$125 million in the first two quarters of 2006. The DEA said they've raided seven such <br />operations calling themselves marijuana dispensaries and today's operation. was by far the <br />largest. <br />Source: http://www.newsl0.net/storyfu112.aspx?storyid=20305 <br />SAl`dTA CRI1Z MAN >FACII~TG MARIJUANA DISTRIBUTION CI-r.ARGES <br />12!l 3/06 4:40 PST SANTA CRUZ (BCN) <br />A Santa Cruz man is expected in court Friday to face charges connected with what the <br />Santa Cruz County Sheriffs Office described as one of the biggest marijuana busts of the <br />year, sheriffs Sgt. Steve Carney said today. Last Friday, Santa Cruz County sheriffs <br />deputies seized 100 pounds of high-grade marijuana bud and $35,000 cash.... That <br />search resulted in the seizure of $489,225 in cash from a locker that belonged to Hoey, <br />Carney said. In addition to the cash at leis residence and i.n the storage locker, police <br />seized another $330.000 from his bank. account and the Sheriffs Office expects to seize <br />even more money from another account, Carney said. The marijuana was packaged in <br />different bags weighing different amounts suggesting the intent to distribute, Carney said. <br />Deputies also confiscated a money counting machine, a scale and other items they believe <br />are related to distribution of marijuana.Hoey's defe~xse attorney, Ben Rice, said taday his <br />client was distributing only to one of Santa Cr-uzs two medical marii1~ana dispensaries <br />and only,for medical mariizsana patients. "The only people he provided to were medical <br />marijuana patients," Rice said. "It's a gray area in our law," Rice said. "The problem with <br />current laws in. California is there are no guidei.ines regarding how people are to get their <br />medicine." "My client is the person who provides one of these dispensaries with the bulk <br />of their medicine," Rice said. "It sounds like a lot of marijuana but it's really just a <br />month's supply." Hoey has one previous conviction for cultivation in 1988, eight years <br />before the medical marijuana measure Proposition 21.5 passed in 1996, Rice said. <br />2 Arrested In Fed Raid On Hayward Med Pot Co-op (BCN} <br />Bay City News Service, December 12, 200b <br />(BCN) HAYWARD The owner and manager of a medical marijuana dispensary in <br />Hayward were arrested by U.S. drug and tax agents Tuesday on federal marijuana <br />charges......in addition to arresting the pair, Drug Enforcement Administration and <br />Internal Revenue Service agents seized hundreds of marijuana plants, marijuana cookies <br />and brownies, two inert grenades, cash anal several expensive cars.....DEA Special Agent <br />Kenny Lee alleged in an affidavit filed with the complaint that fhe co-op purports to sell <br />the drug to patients under California's medical marijuana law, but in fact sells it to <br />healthy people. Lee wrote, "I believe that Hayward Local Patients Co-op seeks to <br />disguise the breadth of its criminal. activity by claiming that it caters exclusively to people <br />suffering from medical illnesses, when in fact persons without any medical condition can <br />purchase marijuana ... at the retail. establishment."....Even before Tuesday's arrests, the <br />cooperative was under order by I~Iayward City .Manager Jesus Annas to cease operations <br />by Dec. 31. <br />9 <br />75A-83 <br />