INGOLD — Sampson County Sheriff Jimmy Thornton tracks back through at least an acre and a half of land just off of Wright Bridge Road and looks through a bag of plumbing fixtures buried deep behind a make-shift camp. It’s full of garbage.

“This is some living, huh?” Thornton says as he puts the bag down and looks over unused food that is sitting under a canvas cover.

Working off tips from residents in the area and in association with the annual Drug Eradication Day, agencies came together to uncover no less than four sites that were growing marijuana in the area, the biggest one being about a mile off U.S. Highway 701 and just north of Garland.

In total, 11,000 plants, some that grew to be 3 to 5 feet high, were seized. Estimated street value, officers said, $27 million. No arrests have been made.

“We estimate it at least $2,500 a plant,” said Thornton. “And I will tell you something, it is great that these drugs won’t get in the hands of our children. What is the grower’s loss, is a certain future for our children.”

In addition to the Sampson County Sheriff’s Department, the Criminal Interdiction Unit, investigators with the Clinton Police Department, the H.E.A.T. Unit (Highway Enforcement Awareness Team), the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), investigators with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the National Guard, Sampson County detectives and even county Student Resource Officers were on hand to help out. The North Carolina Forestry Service was also called upon to dig out trees that led back deep in the woods to where growers built a complex irrigation system — hence the bag of plumbing fixtures — on at least an acre and a half of land.

“You can see, these guys knew what they were doing,” said Thornton. “They ran lines from a well they built and covered up the pump that got water from a pond. They even took the time to paint some of the pipes green so it couldn’t be seen from above.”

But that all changed when helicopters patrolled the area Wednesday and uncovered the plants.

“There were also three more sites — one across the street, and two others down the road a bit,” said Thornton. “But this one was the biggest.”

Thornton estimated that there were at least 8-10 people involved with growing the plants, with at least three of them staying on the site.

“They had a place where they cleaned off, ate and slept,” he said as he picked through a tent. “You can see right here, they even had a battery where they had a cell phone charger on it. They had to be out here at least two months, easy.”

The landowner, who was not connected to the growers, was also contacted by Thornton.

“People need to be aware of what is going on,” he said. “If you see people running out of the woods by your house and you don’t know who they are, call us and report it. We will come out and check it out ... Everybody needs to be aware of what is going on around them and be mindful of their property.”

And Thornton promises that whoever is involved with growing the plants will be brought to justice.

“We are aggressively searching for the people involved with this,” he said. “We want the public to get involved — if someone out there knows anyone who may be involved with this, give us a call.”

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.