14 DAY TRIAL // This past Sunday, a bunch of people enjoying a day at the beach made a rather unexpected discovery: roughly 2,000 pounds of marijuana, all wrapped up in plastic, which were simply hidden away in some bushes.
The marijuana was found on the Arroyo Quemada Beach, in Santa Barbara County, California.
Local authorities suspect that the pot ended up on the beach while people involved in smuggling activities tried to transport it from one location to another.
These assumptions are backed up by the finding of an abandoned Panga-style boat, which was resting on the beach fairly close to the 2,000 pounds (roughly 910 kg) of marijuana and which police officers believe to be connected with pot smuggling attempts.
For those unaware, such Panga-style boats are often used by smugglers who wish to transport either immigrants or illegal merchandise, which is why authorities are quite convinced that they are dealing with pot dealers.
Authorities in Santa Barbara County estimate that, all things considered, the pot found on the Arroyo Quemada Beach this past Sunday is worth about $4 million (€3.09 million).
What confuses the police officers in charge of dealing with this incident for the time being is the fact that, earlier this month, one other stash of marijuana was found in the very same region.
Granted, this first stash was “only” worth about $1 million (€0.77 million), yet this does little to change the fact that drug dealers are rarely (if ever, that is) willing to throw away what they consider to be perfectly good pot.
Therefore, it is the authorities' belief that something is definitely going on.
According to The Examiner, the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department commented on the finding of this marijuana stash and of the boat as follows:
“Sheriff's detectives located a significant amount of evidence that was consistent with marijuana smuggling activities, including trash and debris that was strewn about the beach and nearby coastal access trails.”