It is the second major drug bust in less than a week, but Tuesday’s seizure of 251 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of over a million dollars, also shed new light on a not-so-new problem in Sampson County.

Last Thursday, 2,400 marijuana plants, with a street value of over $6 million, were pulled out of a wooded camp near Ivanhoe, just off of Dr. Kerr Road, and on June 24, investigators with the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office seized some 5,000 marijuana plants from a field a mile off U.S. Highway 701 and just north of Garland. The street value of those plants was estimated at close to $27 million.

“This is the second big bust that we have had in less than a week; this tells us that marijuana is a big item here in this county,” said Sampson County Sheriff Jimmy Thornton. “It is just a matter of having the time to investigate all that we come across. We investigate every tip that we have.”

Thornton tipped his hat to his officers for the fine police work. “I am proud of the personnel involved in this seizure. They went with their training and followed up on their suspicions... that’s a lot of marijuana that is not going to get into the hands of our children.”

Tuesday’s arrest came from the culmination of surveillance and intelligence-gathering stemming from a home invasion that occurred at 131 Red Ranch Lane near Faison on Aug. 21. The driver of the truck stopped Tuesday, Anselmo Diaz-Perez, 19, of 131 Red Ranch Lane, Faison, was at the residence when several armed individuals broke into the location and kidnapped another resident, later releasing him — it was reported that he was pistol-whipped during the incident and suffered “minor” abrasions and bruises.

Due to the “suspicious” nature of the robbery/kidnapping, investigators with the Criminal Investigations Division and the Special Investigations Division shared intelligence with the Criminal Interdiction Team, who started conducting surveillance, which led to Tuesday’s traffic stop.

The truck that Diaz-Perez, an illegal immigrant, was driving was stopped at Grimes Road at Morris Kornegay Road, near Suttontown, because of a registration violation. A subsequent search of the 1994 GMC flatbed truck led to the seizure of 21 bales of marijuana that was packed tightly in a hollowed out, used transformer that was covered inside of the box with plastic wrap and lathered with a helping a grease. The packaging, officers said, was done that way in hopes of throwing off a canine officer.

It didn’t — K-9 officer “Bene” hit on the box anyway.

“After that home invasion last month, our suspicions were heightened,” said Thornton. “There was more to the situation than a simple home invasion. Because of the information, intellegence, that the Criminal Interdiction Team was able to obtain, we became really suspicious that one of those residents may be involved with drug trafficking. Not only was the Criminal Interdiction Team involved, but some from the detective division and our SID (Special Investigations Divisions). It was a combined effort, and it should send a message out there that we are aware of those tell-tale signs and we know what to watch for.”

Diaz-Perez was placed in the Sampson County Detention Center under a $155,000 bond. He was charged late Tuesday night with trafficking marijuana by possession; trafficking marijuana by transport; possession with intent to sell/deliver marijuana; and maintaining a vehicle for the sale/storage of a controlled substance.

The home invasion and the marijuana trafficking investigations are still on-going. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency will also be involved with the Diaz-Perez case, investigators said.

Last Thursday’s bust came from another combined investigation from the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office, Duplin County Sheriff’s Department, Bladen County Sheriff’s Department, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), investigators with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The make-shift camp was destroyed along with the $6 million in pot plants.

The $27 million in marijuana plants that were seized at the Wright Bridge Road bust, north of Garland, were also destroyed. That bust came from local tips, as well as what officers called a stroke of good luck. Helicopters covered the area and discovered the acres of activity, as well as a camp, during the annual Drug Eradication Day. Agencies came together to uncover no less than four sites that were growing marijuana in the area.

Looking at the conditions of the camps, as well as the huge risk involved and consequences with getting caught, Thornton said that greed is the biggest motovator.

Although no arrests have been made in either of the bigger drug busts, investigations are ongoing.

“It doesn’t surprise me that someone would go to these lengths to sell drugs,” he said. “The reason why is that they are seeking every possible way to try to get the drugs in without it being obvious to law enforcement. That is why we train our employees to stay attuned to what to look for, because if they can get something by us, they win and we lose. We don’t want them ever winning; it is our job to win.”

Thornton said that it is important that the public get involved.

“That is how it works, we want people to get involved,” he said. “We want to make sure these drugs are off the streets and cannot get into the hands of our children.”

The sheriff also said that all the drugs collected will be destroyed and the flatbed truck seized Tuesday will be analyzed by the FBI and if approved, will become the property of the county.

Thornton also said that he is proud to be working alongside employees who stop at nothing less than 100 percent.

“I want to tell you how proud I am of the job these teams did and are doing,” he said. “The people of Sampson County are very fortunate to have the dedication that we have got in all divisons that we have with the sheriffs department.”

The Sheriff’s Office tip line is (910) 564-5261 or you can email a tip to cid@intrstar.net.

To reach Doug Clark call 910-592-8137 ext. 123 or send e-mail to sisports@myclintonnc.com.