Police Still Mum On Pot Grow Discovered In Buck Fire

An investigation into a pot grow discovered by firefighters who have been battling the has still not started, according to police.

On Wednesday, Deputy Albert Martinez of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said he could not answer questions about the large-scale marijuana farm found in the 36000 block of Checkmate Road in an unincorporated area just west of San Jacinto State Park.

“Due to the fire we have not been able to access it to conduct our investigation,” Martinez explained. Several investigators were on scene Wednesday afternoon from the department, but it’s not clear what they were doing.

Much of the farm was blackened by the fire, but more than 100 plants were spared due to what one firefighter called “good weed abatement.”

The secluded property was heavily protected by barbed wire and at least one “No Trespassing” sign was posted. The land was littered with older equipment, including machinery, vehicles, satellite dishes, a modular building and metal shipping containers.

There were no property owners or managers in sight Wednesday afternoon when Patch was on scene. It’s not clear who or what organization owns the grow.

Late Tuesday night, a civilian sustained severe burns during the blaze and was airlifted from near the grow. According to unconfirmed reports, he told authorities he had been with two other people in the area who were missing in the fire. An intense search for the two was conducted that night but was eventually called off, according to radio chatter.