SAN JOSE, Calif. -- San Jose police officers who responded to a possible burglary early Tuesday morning discovered an elaborate indoor marijuana growing operation with about 300 plants.
Neighbors called police at 3:08 a.m. to report a residential burglary at a home in the 1300 block of Sandalwood Court, located near South White and Story roads, according to Officer Albert Morales. Neighbors told police three vehicles pulled up to the house and people went into the home and came out carrying objects, Morales said.
By the time police arrived, the vehicles and people were gone, Morales said.
Officers tried to make contact with homeowners and noticed a door was ajar, Morales said. They looked inside the home and discovered an elaborate marijuana growing operation.
Because officers found chemicals inside the home, the San Jose Fire Department's Hazardous Incident Team was brought in to make sure the house was safe to enter, Morales said. Once the home was rendered safe, officers went inside and discovered about 300 plants, worth an estimated $100,000 to $125,000 on the street.
The case remains under investigation.
"It looked like it was strictly a grow-house," Morales said. "It doesn't look like anyone was living there."
Copyright 2012 - San Jose Mercury News
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
