Marijuana "Grow House" Report

The following links are to recent stories throughout the country involving the use of single family homes as "grow houses", or "indoor pot farms":

• There is an explosion in South Florida of hydroponics marijuana being grown inside normal-looking homes using artificial sunlight (see Immigrants Care For Marijuana Crops In South Florida), or watch the NBC Channel 6 TV report - Illegal Crop Caretakers - Hydroponic Homes)
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• Deputies bust at least eight marijuana grow houses in upscale homes in quiet suburban neighborhoods in California this week, hauling in thousands of plants worth millions of dollars (see Be alert for pot farming next door)
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• Police raid Port St Lucie, FL marijuana grow house; uncover about 50 pot plants (see Another alleged pot grow house raided in PSL)
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• Arrest warrants issued for two believed connected with indoor pot farm in Lawreceville, Georgia marijuana grow house (see Warrants issued in pot case), or watch Associated Press video - Pot farm in the suburbs
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• Narcotics task force arrest one; confiscate over 100 pot plants from Chino, California home (see Pot house smoked out), or see Chino Police Arrest Video
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• Lee County, Florida Sheriff’s detectives bust four indoor pot farms, seized plants with over $900K in street value; arrest two; detectives say it's not even close to what is still out there (see Four grow houses busted, 397 plants seized), or watch NBC2 TV report; Lee County Sheriff's Office takes down 17 grow houses and seized $2.8 million worth of pot in 2007 (see Sheriff's Press Release)
• Suspected Cape Coral, Florida grow house catches fire; cops were expected to execute search warrants on the home soon; no comment on cause of fire or quantity of marijuana, if any, in the home (see Suspected Cape grow house catches fire).

Go here for links to other stories on indoor pot farms.

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Marijuana "Grow Houses" On The Network Evening News

The increased use of single family dwellings being used as marijuana "grow houses" was featured on both the NBC and ABC evening news last Thursday. When considered in the context of the current real estate market that's flooded with desperate home sellers (many of whom having little, no, or negative equity in their properties) looking to unload the homes (many of whom who may be "ripe" for an offer to rent the place for an amount sufficient to cover the payments on an "exploding" subprime mortgage as a way of avoiding foreclosure), don't be surprised if there's an indoor pot farm "coming soon to a neighborhood near you."

To watch the NBC report, from Diamond Bar, California, see Pot growers plant themselves in the 'burbs (NBC Nightly News by Peter Alexander - 6-14-07).

To watch the ABC report, see The Marijuana Fields Next Door (Cops say organized crime is sending families into the suburbs to grow marijuana) (ABC News by Jim Avila - 6-14-07).

To read the ABC online report, see Marijuana McMansions. (ABC News - 6-14-07).

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To read about the rise and fall of Mitchell Shane Estep, a former Central Florida indoor pot farming entrepreneur, who went around renting dozens of single family homes in upper middle class neighborhoods from landlords (he preferred gated commmunities) and setting up an indoor marijuana farm, or grow house, in each home, becoming a marijuana mogul in the process by the age of twenty five, see Suburbs the new hot spot for pot growers, reported by The Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Landlord-tenant pot farming litigation involving a raid by Federal agents of a rental home even recently made it onto the TV show, The People's Court (no longer available online).

• Go here for People's Court pot farm case - Part 1; and
  Go here for People's Court pot farm case - Part 2.

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Busting Indoor Pot Farms Becoming As Routine For Some Cops As Waking Up In The Morning & Brushing Their Teeth?

In Collier County, Florida, the Naples Daily News reports:

• For investigators from the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, busting a marijuana grow house is becoming as much a part of their daily routine as waking up in the morning and brushing their teeth. For the third time in four days, investigators busted a grow house on Friday in Golden Gate Estates, confiscating more than $200,000 worth of pot along with several thousand dollars worth of growing equipment, the Sheriff’s Office reported.

• "This is like Groundhog Day. Get up, go to work, go to a grow house," said Lt. Nelson Shadrick of the Sheriff’s Office’s Vice and Narcotics Bureau, referring to the Bill Murray movie where the main character repeats the same day over and over again.

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• The bust comes three days after investigators uncovered 81 marijuana plants valued at nearly $250,000 at [one] grow house, and two days after they found 136 plants valued at about $408,000 inside [another], both in the Estates. [...] Friday’s bust was the seventh suspected grow house to be discovered in Collier County in 2008.

For more, see Busting grow houses becoming daily routine for authorities.

For a related story, see Indoor pot plant operations are a growing problem in Southwest Florida ("Growhouses tend to bring many dangers to the neighborhood, authorities said, including poisonous fumes, power outages, environmental damage, increased risk of fires, increased crime and violence.").

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Go here for links to other recent news stories on indoor pot farms. pot grow ops alpha

Traffic Stop Results In Arrest For Mortgage Fraud, Operating Indoor Pot Farm

TC Palm reports:

• A sophisticated, elaborate marijuana grow house is being dismantled today after a 31-year-old man told officials questioning him about a warrant that he was growing pot in his home. Carlos Andres Bermudez was arrested on an outstanding warrant for mortgage fraud after he was pulled over on a traffic stop, but as Bermudez was being taken into custody, deputies noticed a strong odor of marijuana on his clothing, according to law enforcement officials. Bermudez, who faces charges including cultivation of marijuana and mortgage fraud, told deputies he was growing marijuana in his home ... . When deputies entered the home, they found more than 100 marijuana plants growing in three rooms.

For more, see The nose knows: Strong pot smell on driver leads to grow house bust in St. Lucie. (no longer available online)

Go here to watch St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office video on the indoor pot farm.

See also, Deputies discover luxurious grow house (no longer available online), and Elaborate Marijuana Grow House Discovered In Ft. Pierce.

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Builder Busted In Treasure Coast Indoor Pot Farm Raids; Mortgage Fraud Charges Possible

In Port St. Lucie, Florida, the Palm Beach Post reports:

• A small Port St. Lucie home builder appears to be at the center of an investigation into a ring of marijuana grow houses that sprawled across St. Lucie County, where authorities on Tuesday raided 18 homes and seized 420 pounds of pot, officials said. Authorities said they arrested 10 people, including the owner of Global Home Builders of the Treasure Coast, and uncovered 10 indoor marijuana farms during pre-dawn raids. They also said they confiscated $57,000 cash, 38 grams of cocaine, four guns, nine cars and a boat. The investigation began in September, and resulted Tuesday in what Port St. Lucie Police Chief John Skinner called the area's biggest single-day bust of indoor marijuana farms.

For more, see Builder arrested in raids at pot farms. See also, 10 more houses raided for pot in PSL (TC Palm).

A WPEC-TV Channel 12 story reported that mortgage fraud charges may also be coming in connection with the homes that were raided. To watch the video coverage, see Grow House Bust (WPEC-TV Channel 12) and Video: Police arrest 10 people in raids of alleged marijuana grow houses (St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office).

For story update, see Mortgage Fraud Charges Tacked On To Three Suspects Facing Charges Of Running 10 Indoor Florida Pot Farms. pot grow ops alpha

Minneapolis-Area Cops Busy Busting Grow House Ops

In Minnesota, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports:

• Hennepin County narcotics officers are busting more home-grown marijuana operations -- sometimes in upscale suburbs. One reason for increased home production is the decreased flow of high-grade pot from Canada since border controls tightened up after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, said Sheriff Rich Stanek. Another factor is more indoor cultivation of higher-grade marijuana that's is up to six times more potent than that sold years ago, he said. Higher potency raises dealer profits and also may increase addictiveness, a drug expert said.

For more, see Marijuana growers tend potent kind of pot.

See also, Big Money, Violence Behind Minneapolis Marijuana (Hennepin County Sheriff's statistics on marijuana busts, trends) ("Local marijuana grow operations and related violent crimes are on the rise in the Minneapolis metro, according to Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek." - My Fox TV Channel 9; 12-11-07).

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For the kinds of health and safety concerns arising from using homes to cultivate marijuana, not to mention the kind of damage such operations can inflict on a home, see Beware Of Homes Used As Indoor Pot Farms & Meth Labs.

Go here and go here for other posts on Marijuana Grow Houses. pot grow ops alpha

Cops Charge S. Florida Man In 15-Home Indoor Pot Farm Operation; Allegedly Paid Straw Borrowers $10K To Finance Home Purchases

In Palm Beach County, Florida, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports:

• El Jefe is in the county jail without bail, authorities said. Marijuana growers used the name — Spanish for "The Boss" — for Miguel Fernandez, who ran a $7 million drug empire from about 15 grow houses, mostly in the Loxahatchee area, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. Fernandez, 45, of Hialeah, was booked into the county jail Thursday on a charge of a continuing criminal enterprise involving drugs. [...] "He was the major player in Palm Beach County as far as the cultivating and growing of marijuana," said assistant statewide prosecutor Luis Martinez. "The main guy is done. We have crippled the organization because we have taken him out."

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• Fernandez, who has no criminal record in the state, set up and ran grow houses that contained growing chemicals and crude electrical wiring, investigators say. "It is a complete health hazard," Martinez said. "Right next door you have a regular family living there."

• Fernandez got so many houses by "purchasing someone's credit," according to the arrest report. He would pay $10,000 to use someone's credit and apply it through his connections with mortgage brokers and title companies, the arrest report said. "Miguel will also pay up to $2,000 per pound to the worker if he or she actually owns the home and lives there to tend the crops," Sheriff's Agent Aron Vento wrote.

For more, see Hialeah man accused of running 15 'grow houses' around Loxahatchee.

See also, Palm Beach Post: Informant helps sheriff's office bust grow houses.

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Go here for links to other recent stories on indoor pot farms. pot grow ops alpha

Homebuilder / Alleged Indoor Pot Farm Financier Charged With Mortgage Fraud, Money Laundering

In Port St. Lucie, Florida, the Palm Beach Post reports:

• The patriarch of the family whose Port St. Lucie home building company allegedly financed, setup and maintained a sprawling network of marijuana grow houses was arrested Tuesday, records show. Jose Raul Cepero, 69, a Cuban native who founded Global Home Builders Inc., after two stints in prison during the 1980s and 1990s on drug charges, was arrested Tuesday on warrants for money laundering and mortgage fraud. He is being held at the St. Lucie County Jail in lieu of $1.1 million bail.

• Investigators say Global Home Builders Inc. laundered drug profits and helped its pot growers obtain fraudulent mortgages to buy houses, which company employees would outfit with elaborate indoor gardens, shuttling supplies between Home Depot and the grow houses in trucks bearing the company logo.

For more, see Homebuilder charged with money laundering and mortgage fraud.

Go here for earlier posts on Global Home Builders.

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Mortgage Fraud Charges Tacked On To Three Suspects Facing Charges Of Running 10 Indoor Florida Pot Farms

In Port St. Lucie, Florida, TC Palm reports:

• Three people already sitting in jail on multiple drug charges were charged with mortgage fraud Tuesday. Law enforcement officials allege Juan Carlos Calderon-Mencriff, 41, Carmen E. Fernandez, 48, and Jorge Luis Fernandez, 58, all of Port St. Lucie, were part of an extensive father-and-son pot-growing operation that allegedly used a local home-building company as a front and a network of workers to cultivate hundreds of pounds of marijuana. Roberto Alberto Cepero and his son, Roberto Patricio Cepero — the father and son officials suspect ran the operation — were arrested in November, along with 20 others as part of an investigation that focused on those associated with Global Homes Builders Inc. and that shut down 10 marijuana grow houses in St. Lucie County.

For more, see 3 PSL residents in jail on drug charges now face mortgage fraud charges.

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Federal Appeals Court Stops Government From Taking Wife's Interest In Marijuana Grow House

An Associated Press article reported on the ABC News website reports on a decision by a Federal Appeals Court that stopped the Federal government from taking, by forfeiture, a wife's one half interest in her Branford, Connecticut home in which her husband was growing marijuana.

The home was owned by a husband and wife. The police raided their home and found 65 marijuana plants, glass smoking pipes and other items associated with operating an indoor pot farm. The wife claimed she was unaware that her husband was growing pot in the home. The lower Federal trial court ruled that the entire home was to be forfeited to the Federal Government.

On appeal, the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals reversed that portion of the trial court's decision that required the wife to forfeit her half of the home. The appeals court found that the court record was devoid of any evidence indicating her use of drugs or her involvement in any criminal activity whatsoever. It did, however, note that the jury found that the wife did become aware at some point of her husband's activities, and upon becoming aware, did nothing. Accordingly, the appeals court ruled that forfeiture of her half of the home was a constitutionally excessive fine, given her lack of involvement in the pot cultivation and sent the case back to the lower court to determine to what extent forfeiture should be imposed on her if at all for, what the appeals court described as, "her minimal culpability or any harm she caused." It affirmed that portion of the lower court ruling ordering forfeiture of the husband's half to the government.

For more, see Court: Feds Allowed to Seize Only Half Conn. House in Drug Case, Woman Gets Other Half.

For court decision, see von Hofe vs. United States (2nd Cir., June 27, 2007). pot grow ops alpha

South Florida Cops Charge 29 In "Straw Buyer Financed" Indoor Pot Farm Operation

In Palm Beach County, Florida, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports:

• Authorities charged 29 people Monday in connection with buying more than 25 homes, recruiting families with children to live in them and growing millions of dollars worth of marijuana in closed-door rooms with powerful lights. [...] Inside, the alleged traffickers kept exposed electrical wires, irrigation lines routed through toilets and sinks and enough chemicals, fertilizer and propane to cause explosions, [investigators said].

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• The group's alleged leader — Miguel Fernandez, 45, of Miami — is accused of masterminding the purchase and conversion of homes, said William Shepherd, the statewide prosecutor with the Florida Attorney General's Office. He did it by using "straw" buyers, mostly recent immigrants from Cuba, to purchase the homes, move into them and then care for the plants, officials said. Once the plants were harvested, Fernandez and his lieutenants packed the marijuana, drove it to Miami-Dade County and sold it in New York.

For more, see 29 charged in marijuana 'grow houses' around South Florida.

See also, Florida Attorney General News Release: 29 Individuals Charged with Operating Marijuana Grow Houses in Palm Beach, Miami-Dade Counties.

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Indoor Pot Farms "Sprouting Up" Throughout Northeast Ohio

WKYC-TV Channel 3 (Cleveland, Ohio) recently ran a story on the apparent explosion of marijuana grow houses in the heart of suburbia throughout Northeast Ohio. Reportedly, suburban homes where people don't expect crime and respect neighbors' privacy are the perfect cover for these operations. To view the Channel 3 video report, see Indoor marijuana farms popping up in suburban neighborhoods.

Go here to read the WKYC online story. For earlier WKYC stories on indoor pot farms in Northeast Ohio, with links to the video coverage, see:

• Marijuana harvest times keeps law enforcement busy (9-26-07),
• Police raid another indoor pot growing operation; hundreds of drug plants seized (6-29-07). pot grow ops alpha

After Temporary Job Move To Avoid Foreclosure, Florida Couple Return To Find Home Converted Into Pot Farm

In Lehigh Acres, Florida, WBBH-TV Channel 2 reports:

• A Florida couple who left their home in the care of a house sitter returned this week to find the building converted into a marijuana grow house. Kimberly and John lived in the home in Lehigh Acres, but didn't want to give their last name because they are afraid of retribution. The couple said they couldn't believe their eyes when they walked in the door of their home. The walls were ripped out and all of their belongings were gone.

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• The couple had left the southwest Florida [home] nine months ago because a job in California offered them the chance to avoid foreclosure on the house. [...] They came home after neighbors told them about wild, loud parties that took place at the house. [...] John added, "This was the only home we had. This was our home. We've been gone for almost nine months. We come back and this is what we come back to. It's just heartbreaking."

For more, see Couple returns to find home converted into grow house.

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Bay Area Multi-Site Indoor Pot Farm Operation Yielding Millions Busted, Say San Leandro Cops; Suspected Ringleader On The Lam

In Northern California, Inside Bay Area reports:

• San Leandro police raided multiple East Bay locations Thursday morning in a blockbuster marijuana bust that yielded millions of dollars in drugs and cash, authorities said. Authorities seized approximately 1,000 marijuana plants and more than $150,000 in cash, firearms and advanced indoor growing equipment, San Leandro police Lt. Tom Overton said. The Drug Enforcement [Administration] assisted police in the bust, which Overton said was the culmination of a two-month investigation. "It's one of the biggest busts I've seen in 23 years," Overton said.

• Authorities made six arrests, but the sophisticated indoor growing operation's suspected ring leader eluded authorities, Overton said. Brian Molitaris, 30, leapt from a steep 25-foot embankment into rugged terrain near his luxurious Berkeley hills home, Overton said. Molitaris remains at large.

For more, see Oakland homes raided in major pot bust ('It's one of the biggest busts I've seen in 23 years,' cop says) (if link expires, try here).

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Beware Of Homes Used As Indoor Pot Farms & Meth Labs

Some time ago, the San Francisco Chronicle ran two stories describing the potential problems that may arise from the use of homes / apartments by its occupants as marijuana grow houses and methamphetamine labs.

Whether it's mold, corroded pipes, ripped out interior walls, substandard / illegal alterations to the electrical system that create fire hazards, the production and dumping of toxic waste, toxic vapors that penetrate drywall, electrical conduits, wood and flooring, decontamination issues, financial responsibility for the clean-up, legal liability issues, and the "invisible legacy" that's left in the home for future occupants, the stories describe the health, safety, legal and financial concerns that may be of interest to landlords, property managers, current homeowners, and prospective homebuyers, not to mention the mortgage lenders whose loans are secured by affected homes, and the neighbors living near those homes and apartments used as indoor pot farms and meth labs.

In one account, a fire department discovered a meth lab in one unit of an apartment building when responding to a kitchen fire. Reportedly, the entire building had to be evacuated of its tenants and closed down for "clean up" -- which took about six months. For more, see:

• Hard to just say 'no' to marijuana-growing tenants,
• Homes once used as meth labs can leave an invisible legacy.

Go here for some methamphetamine information resources.

Go here and go here for other posts on home based meth labs. meth lab zeta pot grow ops alpha

More Surprises For Real Estate Investors To Look Out For

KGW-TV Channel 8 in Portland, Oregon recently ran a story about a novel approach used by a homeowner facing foreclosure in addressing his financial situation. For more, see

1) Man uses pigs to trash own house after foreclosure,
2) watch KGW-TV Channel 8 News Report,
3) Follow up report, Charges possible after pigs rescued from foreclosed home.

For more on foreclosures and family pets, go here, and go here. petsII and foreclosures

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The San Francisco Chronicle recently reported a story about the problems landlords face when their tenants turn a rental home into a marijuana "grow room." The story includes the plight faced by one landlord who actually went through this nightmare - the pot-growing tenant actually threatened to sue the landlord -- for mold. For more, see Hard to just say 'no' to marijuana-growing tenants. pot grow ops alpha

Twin Cities Loan Officer Gets 4+ Years In Cash Back Scam; Indoor Pot Farm Bust Smoked Out Bogus Mortgage Deals

In Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Pioneer Press reports:

• The first of four defendants tied to the LHS Mortgage Inc. fraud scandal was sentenced Friday to 4½ years in prison. Mario Lewis, 37, a loan officer at the LHS office in Burnsville, had pleaded guilty to drug charges, wire fraud and money laundering. Judge John Tunheim also ordered Lewis on Friday to pay restitution of $437,000. Lewis pocketed almost that much money from nine properties he bought in the Twin Cities area between 2004 and 2006. [...] Most of the homes Lewis bought are in various stages of foreclosure. That has delayed the identification of actual losses so far, but there will be lenders who suffer consequences from LHS' actions, [Federal prosecutor Joseph] Dixon said.

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• The LHS case involved about 40 separate real estate transactions and is one of the largest mortgage fraud operations uncovered recently as the Twin Cities' real estate market soured. The LHS case had its roots in the bust of a large marijuana-growing operation found in a rental property in 2006, which involved Lewis. When investigators looked into Lewis' finances they found the questionable mortgage transactions.

For more, see Lender gets prison time (First in LHS case took plea).

See also, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Pot grower given 4½ years in prison on charges related to mortgage fraud (Reports that another defendant in this case, Ronald Joseph, who has also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, reportedly was hospitalized Thursday after ingesting antifreeze; the hospital reportedly refused to discuss Joseph's condition. Mortgage closing agent Jill Lehn, 40, of Prior Lake, has also pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.). pot grow ops alpha

Atlanta, GA; Elk Grove, CA Neighborhoods Among Many Dealing With Crime, Public Safety Concerns That Follow Foreclosures

The Associated Press reports:

• Eighty-five bungalows dot the cul-de-sac that joins West Ontario Avenue and East Ontario Avenue in Atlanta. Twenty-two are vacant, victims of mortgage fraud and foreclosure. Now house fires, prostitution, vandals and burglaries terrorize the residents left in this historic neighborhood called Westview Village. [...] "They've seen a lot of prostitution in the area, vagrants wandering in and out of the empty houses and drug activity," said Officer Dakarta Richardson of the Atlanta Police Department. "Some people that I talked to are afraid to walk out of their homes at night."

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• In the Franklin Reserve neighborhood of Elk Grove, Calif., full of subdivisions with half-million dollar homes, homeowners are fighting inner-city problems like gangs, drugs, theft and graffiti. During the boom, the suburb just south of Sacramento sprouted 10,000 homes in four years, attracting investors from the San Francisco area. Now many houses stand empty, weeds overtaking lawns, signs lining the street: "Bank Repo," "For Rent," "No trespassing -- bank owned property." A typical home's value has dropped from about $570,000 to the low $400,000s.

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• The homeowners sometimes have no options but to accept any renters they can get, said Norm Schriever, a local real estate and loan agent. "You get some bad renters in there and the weeds start growing and a few windows are broken and it starts descending into a feeling of chaos," he said.

• Thieves also have looted some empty homes, stripping them of electrical appliances or valuable copper wiring and pipes that can be sold as scrap, he said. Banks aren't watching foreclosed properties closely, said Modesto, Calif., Police Chief Roy Wasden. "As it gets colder, (squatters) will start building fires in these structures and it's quite dangerous," he said.

• Franklin Reserve resident Susan McDonald said two of the homes on her block were turned into indoor marijuana farms. Both caught fire last summer after the pot growers tapped into the city's electric grid with faulty wiring.

For more, see Empty Houses Home to Crime As Loans Fail (Neighborhoods Suffer As Crime Follows Foreclosures Into Vacant Houses).

Go here for posts on vacant homes, foreclosures and squatters. squatter foreclosure zebra pot grow ops alpha