Marijuana growing operation busted in Town of Hamburg

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At 1:41 p.m. on Monday, April 11, the Town of Hamburg Police Narcotics Unit, Detectives Bureau and Officer Joseph O’Brien executed a search warrant for the rear residence at 3828 South Creek Road in the Town of Hamburg.

What the officers found when they entered the residence was over 5 pounds of marijuana which was packaged for sale located all through the house.

There were also two marijuana growing operations in the basement.

“These plants were in a meticulous growing operation,”  Captain Kevin Trask said. “This looks to be an operation where the suspects grew the plants themselves, harvested the leaves, dried them, packaged them and then sold them to customers.”

While executing the search warrant, which was signed by Hamburg Justice Walter Rooth, police found a Remington .22-caliber rifle with its stock cut off in a bedroom closet.

“As soon as anyone cuts off a stock of a rifle, it makes it illegal,” said Trask. “By doing this you have now made a weapon that is concealable,  a hand gun.”

According to police, inside the house they also found digital scales and other items that are believed to be used to process the marijuana.

The plants were taken to Central Police Services in the City of Buffalo, where they will be dried and then weighed. It is estimated that once this is done, there will be over 9 pounds of marijuana. The value of the marijuana was placed at $18,000.

Other items seized were six UV lights, six power supplies, a money counter, a safe, a computer, two cell phones and $900, which was found in a bedroom dresser drawer.

Taken into custody were Joseph M. Curcie, 21, and Ceara E. Hoffman, 19, both of the South Creek Road address, as well as Samuel B. Gardner, 20, of Buffalo.

Found in Gardner’s possession was a driver’s license of a Levittown resident, along with that person’s Bank of America Visa debit card, police said. The owner was being contacted by police.

Curcie and Hoffman were charged with felony second-degree criminal possession of a marijuana and felony third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, defaced for concealment.

Gardner was charged with felony second-degree criminal possession of marijuana.

All three suspects were arraigned before Hamburg Justice Gerald P. Gorman, who released them all on their own recognizance to return to court at 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 28.

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