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Rural couple arrested in Thawville pot bust
By Will Brumleve
Wednesday, September 9, 2009 8:26 AM CDT
RURAL THAWVILLE – More than 2,000 marijuana plants with a street value exceeding $1 million were seized from a farm south of Thawville, and a man and his wife were arrested, authorities said.
Michael Crowley, 57, and his wife, Julie Crowley, 55, of rural Thawville, were each charged with unlawful possession with intent to deliver 30 to 500 grams of marijuana and unlawful manufacturing of more than 200 marijuana plants, both felonies.
Iroquois County Sheriff Eldon Sprau, who assigned the dollar value to the plants, said they were discovered in a field farmed by the Crowleys, who listed an address on Iroquois County Road 1000 North.
About 10 investigators from the sheriff's office and Drug Enforcement Administration seized the plants Friday, after the DEA contacted the sheriff's office last Wednesday, saying the DEA had received a tip about a marijuana-growing operation in rural Thawville, Sprau said.
A subsequent aerial search was conducted Wednesday by the DEA and Friday by the sheriff's office, Sprau said.
"Then we went and talked to the Crowleys and were able to get a search warrant for not only the field, but their house and an outbuilding," Sprau said.
An undisclosed amount of cash and other items were seized from a safe in the home, Sprau said.
The plants were found in a field 20 to 25 rows wide and 530 yards long, a press release said.
Sprau said investigators believe others may have been involved with the marijuana-cultivation operation, and an investigation continues. Sprau said he did not know how long the operation had been going on, or where the drugs were being shipped or sold.
Michael Crowley has three charges against him, the unlawful possession with intent to deliver 30 to 500 grams of cannabis, which Iroquois County State's Attorney James Devine said deals with finished and packaged product found on the premises. The unlawful manufacturing of cannabis sativa plants more than 200 plants, Devine said, deals with the plants that were growing on the property. The third count, manufacturing and dealing cannabis more than 5,000 grams, which is a class x felony. That charge, Devine said, deals with the plants themselves as a finished product and represent more than 5,000 grams of cannabis.
Michael Crowley remains at the Iroquois County Jail in Watseka on a $250,000 bond, while his wife has been released after posting the required 10 percent of her $250,000 bond.
By Will Brumleve
Wednesday, September 9, 2009 8:26 AM CDT
RURAL THAWVILLE – More than 2,000 marijuana plants with a street value exceeding $1 million were seized from a farm south of Thawville, and a man and his wife were arrested, authorities said.
Michael Crowley, 57, and his wife, Julie Crowley, 55, of rural Thawville, were each charged with unlawful possession with intent to deliver 30 to 500 grams of marijuana and unlawful manufacturing of more than 200 marijuana plants, both felonies.
Iroquois County Sheriff Eldon Sprau, who assigned the dollar value to the plants, said they were discovered in a field farmed by the Crowleys, who listed an address on Iroquois County Road 1000 North.
About 10 investigators from the sheriff's office and Drug Enforcement Administration seized the plants Friday, after the DEA contacted the sheriff's office last Wednesday, saying the DEA had received a tip about a marijuana-growing operation in rural Thawville, Sprau said.
A subsequent aerial search was conducted Wednesday by the DEA and Friday by the sheriff's office, Sprau said.
"Then we went and talked to the Crowleys and were able to get a search warrant for not only the field, but their house and an outbuilding," Sprau said.
An undisclosed amount of cash and other items were seized from a safe in the home, Sprau said.
The plants were found in a field 20 to 25 rows wide and 530 yards long, a press release said.
Sprau said investigators believe others may have been involved with the marijuana-cultivation operation, and an investigation continues. Sprau said he did not know how long the operation had been going on, or where the drugs were being shipped or sold.
Michael Crowley has three charges against him, the unlawful possession with intent to deliver 30 to 500 grams of cannabis, which Iroquois County State's Attorney James Devine said deals with finished and packaged product found on the premises. The unlawful manufacturing of cannabis sativa plants more than 200 plants, Devine said, deals with the plants that were growing on the property. The third count, manufacturing and dealing cannabis more than 5,000 grams, which is a class x felony. That charge, Devine said, deals with the plants themselves as a finished product and represent more than 5,000 grams of cannabis.
Michael Crowley remains at the Iroquois County Jail in Watseka on a $250,000 bond, while his wife has been released after posting the required 10 percent of her $250,000 bond.
