VENTURA COUNTY-The Sheriff's Department in Ventura County report that they have seized an outdoor grow operation along the north slope of Pine Mountain in the Los Padres National Forest. They claim that the seizure is the largest in the county's history.

68,000 plants were discovered in the operation. Authorities estimate the value of the crop to be around $205 million. The initial operation located several large plots along the Lockwood Valley road system. After airlifting in investigators, several campsites were found. The campsites contained tents, propane stoves, sleeping bags, fertilizers, pesticides, and a lot of trash. Weapons were also discovered in the seizure.

Several thousand feet of irrigation hose was found snaked throughout the hillside, fertilizers, pesticides and poisons were found at each cultivation site. There were also many reservoirs, dug into the hillside and lined with plastic at the sites.

The Ventura County Fire Department, Oxnard Police Department and the U.S. Forest Service also participated in the operation.