On Wednesday, September 11, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office received a call about an armed robbery involving cannabis at a location in the Salmon Creek area.
When deputies responded to the scene, the victim explained that he had been sleeping when he was awakened in the early morning to find an intruder holding a shotgun against his face.
“Don’t move,” the intruder told the victim. “Or I will kill you.”
The victim was restrained with zip ties along with two other victims who left the scene before law enforcement arrived.
The victims witnessed two to four masked individuals take approximately 96 pounds of untrimmed cannabis that had been hung up.
According to a Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office news release, the location is a permitted cannabis cultivation site and is licensed through the County of Humboldt and the state of California.
Further investigation of the incident led deputies to the residence of a possible suspect in the 3300 block of E Street in Eureka.
When deputies arrived at the residence, they detected the scent of cannabis emanating from inside.
One of the possible suspects at the residence was on probation with a search and seizure clause.
The Eureka Police POP team assisted Humboldt County deputies in conducting a probation search at the residence where two suspects were found trimming cannabis.
While searching the residence, authorities noticed evidence of other crimes and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Marijuana Enforcement Team was dispatched to secure the residence while a search warrant was obtained.
It was determined that 26-year-old Matthew Williams and 30-year-old Parker Henderson had stolen the cannabis earlier and both were arrested for armed robbery.
Williams was found to be wearing an ankle monitor.
Additionally, 37-year-old Chad Sample and 50-year-old Forrest Vandorn were arrested for felony warrants, 38-year-old Angela Early was arrested for a misdemeanor warrant, and 32-year-old Andrea Hunsucker was arrested on a charge of a felon in possession of a chemical agent.
The cultivation site owner identified multiple sample bags, packaging and untrimmed cannabis that law enforcement had recovered from the suspects’ residence.
After obtaining a court order, the investigating deputy was able to return all recovered cannabis to the owner.
The incident is currently under investigation and additional charges may be brought up.
