Medford Man Sentenced To 15 Years In Federal Prison For Marijuana Distribution Conviction
Oregon medical marijuana program used as a cover to grow marijuana for sale
(MEDFORD, Ore.) - - Brian Wayne Simmons, 40, of Medford, Oregon, was sentenced on May 28, 2013, to 15 years in federal prison for conspiracy, and manufacturing and distributing marijuana.
Simmons owned and operated Brian’s Green Thumb Farm on East Gregory Road in Central Point, Oregon, purporting to grow organic vegetables. U.S. Drug Enforcement (DEA) agents executed a search warrant on Simmons’ farm in October 2011, seizing 456 large marijuana plants. Agents seized an additional 64 large marijuana plants at a second grow site on Dark Hollow Road in Medford. The plants ranged from approximately 5-8 feet tall and produced upwards of 10 pounds of marijuana per plant. Agents also seized thousands of pounds of harvested marijuana being processed at both (1,600 pounds dry weight). Simmons had previously registered over 20 persons as “growers” at his marijuana sites, creating the appearance that he was complying with the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act. In fact, evidence established that many of the growers were recruited in name only and took no part in the grow operation. Simmons also recruited persons to tend the marijuana plants for a percentage of the profit, and paid others to trim the marijuana. The investigation revealed that Simmons had been growing and selling marijuana since at least 2009, with documented sales of over $740,000 for the 2009 and 2010 grow seasons. Based on the seized evidence, Simmons had roughly quadrupled the size of his operation by 2011.
Simmons was convicted by a twelve person jury after a trial in Medford, Oregon in December 2012. A co-defendant, Michael Grantski, was acquitted. Another co-defendant, Michael Peru, pleaded guilty, and is pending sentencing.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Medford Police Department, Ashland Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
