Pierce County drug raids uncover illegal cannabis operation, more than 2,000 plants
Pierce County prosecutors have charged seven people with drug crimes connected to an allegedly illegal marijuana operation after a Sheriff’s Office investigation discovered over 1,000 plants growing at a house in the Frederickson area and dozens of pounds of cannabis product.
Search warrants were carried out Dec. 5 in Frederickson, Spanaway and at an address just southwest of Puyallup, according to charging documents filed Tuesday in Superior Court. A fourth search warrant was executed Dec. 8 at an address that appears to be east of Puyallup.
In all, court documents say, 2,160 marijuana plants were found in various stages of growth at the Frederickson and Spanaway residences.
Investigators found $15,818 at the house southwest of Puyallup, where there were no growing plants but evidence of a recent grow operation, including garbage bags full of harvested marijuana plant scraps. Detectives believe the home they searched Dec. 8 was being used to grow weed and was in the process of being disassembled. The search recovered equipment such as lights, air filters, ballasts, fans and chemicals.
All seven defendants have been charged with conspiracy to manufacture a controlled substance, unlawful use of a building for drug purposes and unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. Defense attorneys for the suspects were not listed in court records Tuesday.
The defendants are: * Yifeng Chen, 37 * Yonghong Wu, 36 * Wei Feng Chen, 70 * Hau Kuen Chiu, 63 * Yilong Yilong Liang, 40 * Aiyu Li, 38 * Zhuowei Liang, 63
All the defendants were booked into jail when the search warrants were completed, but only Yifeng Chen, Zhuowei Liang and Aiyu Li remained in custody Tuesday evening, with arraignment hearings set for Wednesday afternoon. Court records show the other defendants are scheduled to enter pleas to their charges Dec. 23.
Cannabis is legal in Washington, but Sheriff’s Office deputy Carly Cappetto said in a Facebook post that unlicensed marijuana grows are illegal and can be dangerous.
The Sheriff’s Office’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) began its inquiry into the allegedly illegal grows in fall 2023, according to incident reports included in the probable cause document. SIU members conducted hours of surveillance on the residences, primarily Yifeng Chen, who owns the properties just outside Puyallup and in Spanaway.
Yifeng Chen was allegedly seen traveling from the residences to marijuana-supply shops and Home Depot, where records state he appeared to be purchasing building supplies often used to set up indoor marijuana grows. Investigators said he was also sometimes accompanied by his father, Wei Peng Chen; his mother, Hau Kuen Chiu; and his wife, Yonghong Wu.
The Sheriff’s Office, the Lakewood Police Department and a team of special agents from Homeland Security Investigations reportedly carried out the search warrants. The locations included the 7500 block of 184th Street East, the 8100 block of 113th Street Court East, the 2200 block of 45th Avenue East and an address on Sierra Drive East.
The reports note that a pistol and a shotgun registered to Yifeng Chen were found at the house on 184th Street in Frederickson.
Yilong Yiang was located at that residence, and he allegedly told a deputy who spoke Mandarin that he’d lived there for about a year with his father, Zhuowei Liang, and his wife, Aiyu Li. According to charging documents, he said his family was paid $3,000 to $4,000 per month to live there and keep it safe from burglars.
Yifeng Chen allegedly told investigators that he worked for a legal marijuana retailer in Monroe called Wing Sing. The Washington State Department of Revenue’s business license database does not appear to show a business by that name. Deputies reported finding more than $2,000 on his person when he was arrested.