Deputy Ill After Possible Exposure to Banned Pesticide on Marijuana Grow

MetamidofosPress release from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office:

On Friday July 13th, Deputies from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Marijuana Eradication Team (C.O.M.M.E.T.) were assisting Wardens from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife with the service of a search warrant at a residence in the 13500 block of Kenny Creek Road in Branscomb. The purpose of the search warrant was to address a marijuana growing operation that involved suspected environmental crimes. These crimes included the illegal diversion of water for the purpose of cultivating. The growing operation was also thought to be illegal and unpermitted.

During the service of the search warrant, a Deputy Sheriff was possibly exposed to a chemical that was being used as an insecticide on the marijuana plants. The chemical has been identified as Metamidofos which is listed as a banned or severely restricted pesticide by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The pesticide is transdermal and can be absorbed through contact with the skin, or inhaled through the respiratory system. Based upon the packaging and labeling of the bottle the pesticide appears to have been brought into the United States illegally from Mexico.

After the service of the search warrant the Deputy started to experience stomach problems and progessively worsened. He was treated at a local area hospital in the days following his exposure and he is still under the care of a physician due his continuing symptoms that are common for exposure to this substance.

The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office would like to caution the public and other first responders, who might come into contact with dangerous pesticides associated with marijuana cultivation, to use extreme caution as these types of chemicals are now frequently found in marijuana growing operations. If you think you have been exposed to this substance or a similar substance, please seek medical attention as soon as possible.

Attached is a link to a material Safety Data Sheet on the substance: http://www.villacrop.co.za/files/Metamidofos%20585%20SL_UCP_MSDS.pdf

Facebooktwitterpinterestmail

Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules

Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

66 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Willy
Guest
Willy
5 years ago

Well sure hope they catch those responsible. Illegal grow, environmental crimes, and poison.

T
Guest
T
5 years ago

I have never left a post, but this is a disgusting scenario which is a crime. How reckless and irresponsible. I hope that I am correct in believing that most cultivators would never knowingly use anything like this. This would never happen on our farm or anyone we associate with so I hope cultivators will not be judged by this instance.

Jimmy
Guest
Jimmy
5 years ago
Reply to  T

Too toxic for weed but ok for food crops imported from other countries!

Someone
Guest
Someone
5 years ago
Reply to  T

Tons of growers use toxic pesticides and fertilizers. Avid, eagle 20, nasty chemical fertilizers. They dont care as long as they get paid. Thank god for new regulations that will throw that bud in thr garbage.

Mendocino Mamma
Guest
Mendocino Mamma
5 years ago
Reply to  Someone

Yes, and that’s why so many of the “old-timers’ have died from liver failure, or pancreatic cancer because of all of the nasty chemicals they play in.

just me
Guest
just me
5 years ago

mendocino mamma. [Edit…insert expression of disbelief]

Mendocino Mamma
Guest
Mendocino Mamma
5 years ago
Reply to  just me

Well I would say you have not been around long. Have seen many “old timers” pass that sprayed their crops daily. Certain they never confessed to their doctors. AVID etc all very toxic stuff. Don’t eat the table grapes!

Industrial AG
Guest
Industrial AG
5 years ago
Reply to  Someone

Do you know most non organic table grapes have Eagle 20 on them?

gimmie a break
Guest
gimmie a break
5 years ago

you would think a cop would be smart enough to read. you know its a fkn illegal that’s usin that shit… check the hospitals and see if any other peeps have been in with symtoms

Dawn
Guest
Dawn
5 years ago
Reply to  gimmie a break

Don’t you think it might already have been applied, or are you just assuming the police are stupid because you would have drunk it out of the bottle?

Divide by Zero
Guest
Divide by Zero
5 years ago

Hey you “open borders” folks, take a good look.

Wow!
Guest
Wow!
5 years ago
Reply to  Divide by Zero

That has nothing to do with families seeking asylum. [edit]

Guss
Guest
Guss
5 years ago
Reply to  Wow!

Open borders and seeking asylum are two totally different things. Open borders means you don’t have a country, people can come and go as they please with little to no restriction. It’s a terrible idea.

john
Guest
john
5 years ago
Reply to  Guss

And seeking asylum means you walk/drive/fly/swim up to a border (or other government) official and declare that you are seeking asylum. It does not include those that choose to sneak in to a country illegally, live and hide there until caught, and then claim asylum because they want to stay.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago
Reply to  Guss

I’M against open borders and global government but I’m down for mexicans and gotta say this MB exposing the HATE going on here in the NC… y’all gotta grow up and stop being racist against blacks, mexicans, and hippies. I’m a white logger, but the anti-weed white power folks need to step back and think about whether Jesus Christ would be down with that.

Divide by Zero
Guest
Divide by Zero
5 years ago
Reply to  Wow!

Asylum from what?

ReadANewspaper
Guest
ReadANewspaper
5 years ago
Reply to  Divide by Zero

the fact that you even need to ask ‘asylum from what’ is indicative of the self centered scope of Americans. There’s literally genocide and civil war happening in MULTIPLE central and South American countries…. on top of rampant cartel/gang violence, government corruption, food shortages and crippling poverty…. you know that just because they’re coming THROUGH Mexico, that doesn’t mean they’re all FROM Mexico, right?

Divide by Zero
Guest
Divide by Zero
5 years ago
Reply to  ReadANewspaper

You mean the same Cartels that were illegally sent automatic weapons by the previous administration during the Era of the Great Mistake. Rubbish, they’re imported by liberal policy to bolster a declining voter base. Example; California allows illegals to obtain driver’s licenses, automatically registers them to vote, and sends them a mail-in ballot. Hmm, wonder what democrat immigration policy would be if illegals voted 80% Republican? I think we all know the answer.

Killapotomus
Guest
Killapotomus
5 years ago
Reply to  ReadANewspaper

All due to their corrupt system . They should fix it rather than run from it and spread that same corruption elsewhere. If they truly want asylum them sneaking across a border is not the way to get it . There is a process in which asylum is provided to those truly in need . It’s a common claim which many don’t make until they are caught . It would be more believable If they were to apply before being arrested .

Guss
Guest
Guss
5 years ago
Reply to  ReadANewspaper

Ever been to Detroit? Lots of folks in our very own country that are suffering on unimaginable levels. Should we take care of them as well as we do non citizens? Or do they not matter because they are “privileged Americans?”

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Divide by Zero

No one is even suggesting we have “open borders” except trumpistas. Check your facts.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

If all people who cross illegally are loudly declared to be seeking asylum and have a right to stay, then that is exactly what is being what is being said.

Things that make you go hmm
Guest
Things that make you go hmm
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

What ⁉️

Killapotomus
Guest
Killapotomus
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

Wrong . Just wrong . They are signing up illegals to vote in San Fran instead of deporting them . The open border policy has been in effect for years , catch and release to never be seen in court . They bring children across because during the obama era it was a way to get released almost immediately into the country.

local observer
Guest
local observer
5 years ago
Reply to  Divide by Zero

that brand was made in Texas.
“Methamidophos is used in great quantities in ricefields in China.[6] Rice–fish culture is common in the southern parts of China as well as in many other rice-producing countries (e.g., Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines). Brown rice (unpolished) in this study contained double the concentration of polished rice. Both plants and animals did not degrade the pesticide well, and fish for human consumption in these cases contains methamidophos in concentrations roughly similar to brown rice.”
it looks like brown rice is not so good after all.

RealityCzech
Guest
RealityCzech
5 years ago
Reply to  Divide by Zero

Open or closed. Doesn’t matter. I could go down to Mex today and come back with all sorts of good illegal stuff just ’cause I’m a blonde haired blue eyed Cali son. Just declare a liter of tequila (’cause declaring nothing is always suspicious), maybe a blanket, a little sand under the toenails, maybe even an uneasy stomach (cause, you know, bad fish and mayonaise), properly state my citizenship as U.S., good to go.

The political era doesn’t matter: Trump, Obama, Bush43, Clinton, Bush41, Reagon. Nothing at the border has changed, as far as Americans bringing sh!t back into the states.

local yocal
Guest
local yocal
5 years ago

good or bad law enforcement in unheard of heat are eradicating weed and they are covered in resin terrible job for anyone.
Does anyone think about how hard they work in this heat its unbelievable
give them props get the big environmental pigs leave small farms alone.
.

THC
Guest
THC
5 years ago
Reply to  local yocal

Unheard of heat? So far the Summer’s been pretty mild.

Divide by Zero
Guest
Divide by Zero
5 years ago
Reply to  local yocal

Oh please, the “pigs” thing is so yesterday. Get a grip, and in fact, get a job.

Norberto Olavarria
Guest
Norberto Olavarria
5 years ago

Guess what you’re smoking folks, doubt this is the only grow using illegal pesticides/insecticides

Mendocino Mamma
Guest
Mendocino Mamma
5 years ago

100% over the years of working with many Growers (not all) don’t care what they spray on their stuff as long as it sells in the end. I can’t count how many times I got into pretty heated discussions with people about what they were spraying on their weed and they didn’t care again as long as it sells. I even know a couple people that have had children with issues because of the pregnant women being exposed to nasty chemicals. Very sad.

totally legal
Guest
totally legal
5 years ago

Who do you think is stupid enough to buy from illegal grows?

RealityCzech
Guest
RealityCzech
5 years ago
Reply to  totally legal

The FDA doesn’t have the resources to check even a small percentage of organic veggie farms. Farmers, of any kind, can say / do what they want. And who’s going to check the organic validity of weed farms? FDA? ATF? DEA?

To answer your question, anyone might buy from illegal grows.

Saddened by the evil
Guest
Saddened by the evil
5 years ago

and that is why the sheriff’s dept can not sell, HAS to destroy the crops they find. But what about all the people who would have USED this stuff if it had gotten sold to use? Criminal is too mild a word…

Not buying it
Guest
Not buying it
5 years ago

Surely he didnt snort a fat rail of this stuff at the grow scene.
Get ready for a lot of officers claiming symptoms especially when forbidden chemicals are discovered.
Officers should sign a waiver and wear protective gear.
All this article screams at me is “early retirement and million dollar lawsuits” are next to be covered by the tax payer whenever they find funny bottles.
Lets see his bloodcharts and all other test results.
One thing is clear if ten officers were exposed all ten show symptoms. Was he the only one on scene or what?

Pinkasso
Guest
Pinkasso
5 years ago

Is the picture of the hand holding the bottle from the same guy who is sick? One would think those guys are trained to use rubber gloves and not mechanics gloves when handling unknown chemicals at a crime scene.

Josey wales
Guest
Josey wales
5 years ago

Disgusting…. Kenny creek is a beautiful pristine, untouched creek, at least was. This property has been a problem for years. People swim in Kenny creek and drink that water. Absolutely disgusting…

filthy area
Guest
filthy area
5 years ago
Reply to  Josey wales

It’s at the bottom of a multiple event timber harvest land on both sides.. There’s leaky old POS equipment in multiple places in its watershed.
It’s kinda funny you can’t tell. I believe in pollution and its damaging actions on the environment, but look, the creek is as pure as God made it..

Spin doctor
Guest
Spin doctor
5 years ago

Sounds like food poisoning to me…

Life is Good
Guest
Life is Good
5 years ago

OSHA should weigh in on this. Elbow length chemical gloves, Tyvek suit and a full face mask complimented by a breathing apparatus. Go!

Pizza
Guest
Pizza
5 years ago

Why use anything toxic with all the organically safe options out there on the shelves? I know literally hundreds of growers that only use safe pesticide/herbicides for years and years so not all growers are all that bad, most the old timers care about the environment, it’s the newcomers riding in on the green wave that don’t understand or simply don’t care

I like stars
Guest
I like stars
5 years ago
Reply to  Pizza

It’s not always oldtimers vs newcomers when it comes to nasty stuff.

Chatty Cathy
Guest
Chatty Cathy
5 years ago

Wow grow your own people, the only way to know what your injesting. All crops grow your own, food producers are as bad

ask questions
Guest
ask questions
5 years ago

Kym , you should ask the question of why the state is not testing for this pesticide in the tier 1 or 2 pesticide tests? i know groups cleaning up grows in your area have found it before. they have it on their reports on their site.

R -DOG
Guest
R -DOG
5 years ago

If the government stop droping shit out of the air thar would not be this problem government fly over drop all kinds of shit to fuxk your plants up

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago

(As related to cannabis) Environmental crimes are the worst!! Throw the book at people who use heavily toxic products (carelessly) in the environment!!! (That also goes for lumber companies, etc, etc!). I believe most growers who call this area home would agree.

ItISisntIt
Guest
ItISisntIt
5 years ago
Reply to  Ben Round

You also realize one of trumps first actions was to UN-ban poisons like this one, right? How about throwing the book at him?

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago
Reply to  ItISisntIt

Yes!!! Please, PLEASE! See you at the protests!

Native
Guest
Native
5 years ago

Where’s Earth First on this one or any grow???? Ohhh wait they’re tending their own grow. Hippocrates. Weed is doing more damage to our rivers than logging.

That sauce
Guest
That sauce
5 years ago
Reply to  Native

😂 sure it is buddy

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago
Reply to  That sauce

weeds bad, mmmkay

I like stars too!
Guest
I like stars too!
5 years ago
Reply to  That sauce

Hippocrates was a physician.

Hypocrites purport to believe in things that they do not privately support.

Thanks for your input!

gunther
Guest
gunther
5 years ago
Reply to  Native

You’d think there would be Earth Firsters chained to locked gates in protest of the damage being done. Where are they?

ItISisntIt
Guest
ItISisntIt
5 years ago
Reply to  Native

Please do a little more research. Not even close.

I like stars too!
Guest
I like stars too!
5 years ago

In a county absolutely cram full of criminals, and a region absolutely cram full of crazy people attempting to profit from growing crazy amounts of crazy-weed and then pander the same toxic weed on the black market, why wouldn’t the growers use whatever chemical they please?

Your county provides little protection to the grower who grows legally and cleanly, much less incentives, to the grower who grows highly toxic product in an unsafe environment, to operate clean and legal!

The above story clearly indicates why pot is now legal, why grows must be permitted, and why retail marijuana must be tested for illegal toxins!

Protecting the consumer has become the focus, and, it is almost amusing that our formerly illegal product is being grown with illegal and banned chemicals…

DON’T BUY BLACK MARKET WEED! DON’T SMOKE TOXIC PRODUCT! DON’T PROMOTE THE EXPORT OF AND TRAFFICKING IN BLACK MARKET WEED!

GROW CLEAN, GROW RESPONSIBLE, PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT SURROUNDING YOUR FARM. SUPPORT THE ERADICATION OF BLACK MARKET FARMS!

Meanwhile, consumers, after 40+ years of smoking, well, whatever they put on it, you might want to rethink your consumption and use of cannabis…

You live in a region with a massive cancer cluster. Hmmmmm, wonder what could have caused that?

Mike
Guest
Mike
5 years ago

People have been buying black market weed for half a century and for half a century everyone related to weed has been claiming there’s has never been a documented death from weed. But now it causes cancer unless you have a permit?

The Entropic Empath
Guest
The Entropic Empath
5 years ago
Reply to  Mike

Most amazing thing about people: People will buy anything!

I suppose you have no reason for concern, until it’s YOUR cancer…

GROW CLEAN, GROW LEGAL!

DON’T TRADE IN BLACK MARKET WEED!

I predict that until the industry is respectable, no one will respect it!

Dirtywhiteboy
Guest
Dirtywhiteboy
5 years ago

Thanks for letting all the growers no what to put all over the gardens to keep the police out Metamidofos police repellent

groba dude trustafarian osnt
Guest
groba dude trustafarian osnt
5 years ago
Reply to  Dirtywhiteboy

It’s not the only toxic substance from Mexico that is present in large amounts in Humboldt: They also produce Methamphetamine and Black Tar Heroin…

local observer
Guest
local observer
5 years ago

meth is toxic but the heroin isn’t. haven’t you noticed the difference in the mug shots.

Rolo
Guest
Rolo
5 years ago

Make the damn grower(s) drink it! Prayers for the Deputy. Get well soon brother.

TQM
Guest
TQM
5 years ago

There you have it…black market pot. Imagine all the pesticide ridden plants that do end up in the supply…people are actually smoking that shit.

local observer
Guest
local observer
5 years ago
Reply to  TQM

imagine all the pesticides that end up in all of the food we eat. Even Chicken Nuggets have pesticides. sometimes ignorance is bliss, this may be one of them. page 27 & 28 have the lab results for the subject chemical. DDT, DDE, and DDD were banned in the 70s but it is still in almost everything we eat. this was the last full lab study and was 2004.
https://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/FoodScienceResearch/TotalDietStudy/UCM291686.pdf

TQM
Guest
TQM
5 years ago
Reply to  local observer

Local Observer, that’s why I’m extremely thoughtful and picky about the foods I eat. Besides…food isn’t part of the greedy bastard cheating black market.

Truth be told
Guest
Truth be told
5 years ago

Wow, the Sheriff is using a deputy feeling sick as a means to once again bash Cannabis Farmers, he even goes out on the limb and claims this chemical is commonly found at cannabis farms, once again the Mendocino County Sheriff Office and head Sheriff #1 has shown himself to be dishonest and untrustworthy. This pesticid3 is not even sold in the US and this is just one more publicity and propaganda stunt by Allman which once again shows his dishonesty. I wonder why the MCSO always has to use publicity and propaganda in is personal war against “pot culture”, could it be that cannabis culture has won and Allman needs to keep the BS flowing because his giant ego just can’t accept the fact that cannabis is now legal and it is time to solve real crimes and arrest dangerous criminals, solve the many Mendo missing persons cases and unsklved homicides that go back to the start of Allmans eradication career. Maybe the MCSO is just addicted to the free money they pilfer from mom and pop cannabis farmers, after all therer are no accounting check and balances, just crooked deputies stuffing money into their pockets and writing down half of what they find on evidence logs and evidence reciepts. The captains, sargeants and deputues all take share in splitting up the plunder they steal from cannabis farms, this is why it is so important to continue the eradication efforts against the wishes of the people, free money and free drugs and pounds which the very same deputies sell on the black market. Its the truth and I can give you names and instances ecen though I would be risking my life and job. The truth is they are the largest criminal enterprise in MENDO, they steal, they kill and they coverup and loot. MCSO IS ROTTEN AND CORRUPT FROM THE HEAD OF THE SNAKE TO THE TAIL OF THE SERPENT.

trackback

[…] fentanyl is not common. The bigger threat from marijuana is not fentanyl, but the pesticides like Carbofuran and fertilizers being used in the growing of […]