Quick Take
A crime ring that had the local cannabis industry on edge has been arrested, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced in a news conference Thursday in Santa Cruz County. The group was responsible for more than $1 million in stolen product from cannabis businesses since August 2023.
The hits were sophisticated, dangerous and, for cannabis operators throughout Santa Cruz County and California, meant ballooning security budgets. Over the past 20 months, business owners lost sleep, worried their shops would be the next target of a burglary ring whose method of breaking in by any means necessary could mean shattered windows, busted display cases, or, at The Hook Outlet in Watsonville, a car driven through the front of the building.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta visited Santa Cruz County on Thursday and stood alongside recently appointed sheriff-in-waiting Chris Clark to announce arrests in a crime spree that resulted in the murder of an Oakland police officer, high-speed car chases, a controversial shooting in Santa Cruz and more than $1 million in goods stolen.
Flanked by representatives from the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office and the Oakland Police Department, Bonta said a monthslong, multiagency effort has led to 22 arrests, tied to 15 cannabis business burglaries across nine counties, including Monterey, Alameda, San Luis Obispo and as far south as San Diego. The crime ring, Bonta said, stole nearly 1,000 pounds of cannabis, as well as plants, gummies, edibles and cartridges. Police also seized firearms as part of the bust.
Nearly all of the suspects are from Alameda County or Oakland. Of the 22 suspects, only two remain in custody, as the large majority have been released on bail.
“We believe we have the core of the defendants and the core of the incidents,” Bonta said. “We’re not talking about shoplifting a couple packs of THC gummies. Far from it. We’re talking about coordinated schemes that hurt our businesses and pose a threat to our communities.”
Frederick Shavies, deputy chief of the Oakland Police Department’s Bureau of Investigations, said the suspects “spanned multiple criminal street groups” and gangs across Oakland. Shavies said the case was cracked open by officers “combing through media and surveillance video.”
“We also know that [some suspects] were involved in violent activities in Oakland; we had an Oakland police officer that was killed on Dec. 29 as part of these dispensary burglaries,” Shavies said.
Since Santa Cruz County was home to about half of the 15 burglaries, Bonta said his office decided to bring all of the cases to Santa Cruz County Superior Court.
As part of the arrests, which began in mid-July, Bonta’s office announced 32 felony charges from organized retail theft to grand theft and conspiracy. Some of the suspects have as many as 22 felony counts against them, and others are still awaiting arraignment. All who have entered pleas thus far have pleaded not guilty. Some preliminary hearings are scheduled for Sept. 30.
Bonta’s office began its investigation in February. The earliest burglary formally linked to the group happened back in August 2023, but dispensaries in Santa Cruz County have been on notice since December 2022, when a coordinated operation lifted $50,000 worth of product out of the 3 Bros dispensary on Santa Cruz’s Westside.
However, it was the November 2023 burglary of Santa Cruz’s Decibel Gardens that drew the broader public’s attention. Owner Derek Hubbard arrived at his shop as the burglary was taking place and fired multiple gunshots as the burglars fled the scene. Although they hadn’t made progress on finding the burglary suspects, local police arrested Hubbard and charged him with assault with a deadly weapon. The local cannabis industry’s furor that he faced charges found its way into city council meetings and newspaper headlines and op-eds.
According to the charging documents for the 22 suspects, none have been formally tied to Decibel Gardens burglary, which happened on Nov. 13. However, Bonta said Thursday that more charges could be forthcoming.
Chad Maxwell, CEO of 3 Bros, called it “wonderful” that police made some arrests, but was “disheartened” that only a couple suspects remained in custody. Maxwell, whose Westside Santa Cruz dispensary and Soquel cultivation business have each been hit, was hesitant with his criticism, saying the cannabis industry needed to work on building a better relationship with law enforcement. However, he said he does “not feel safer yet,” since most of the suspects have been released on bail.
“I lose a lot of sleep over this. We spent tens of thousands of dollars on security upgrades after we had already spent tens of thousands of dollars on security upgrades. I don’t know any of us that will sleep easy until people are in jail,” Maxwell said.
Hubbard and Bryce Berryessa, owner of The Hook Outlet, did not return Lookout’s calls for comment Thursday. Hubbard will appear for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 9. He has pleaded not guilty.
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