Pot seized in Delaware City

A marijuana bust in Delaware City Tuesday yielded about $2,000 worth of marijuana plants, buds and seeds.

Police arrested the husband and wife team of Joseph and Laura Hodges of Delaware City.

But more significant than the amount of pot discovered, says Delaware City Police Chief Daniel Tjaden, is the message.

“This is the growing season and we just want to get the word out to the guys in town that are dealing in drugs that we’re not going to tolerate it,” Tjaden said. “That we’ll find you, we’re going to get a search warrant, we’re going to get into your house and we’re going to arrest you and we’re going to make this town a better place to live.”

Authorities first searched the suspect’s home, where they found marijuana buds, seeds, a scale, log books, and a cell phone. Authorities say at that point Joseph Hodges decided to cooperate, and he took them to a field on Delaware City Refinery property, adjacent to a corn field, where they located 39 nearly-mature pot plants.

“Unless you were looking for them, you wouldn’t have found them,” Tjaden said.

Police say they also found catalogues and price sheets in the couple’s home that apparently originated from a business in Canada. The glossy materials listed the types of seeds and their prices. Tjaden says he’s never seen anything like it.

“It’s new to me and I’ve been a cop for 38 years,” he said. “It’s a big business and they’re not hiding it.”

Tjaden says he wasn’t yet sure if the company listed on the price sheets would be prosecuted.

“I’d have to check with federal authorities and see if that’s a violation,” he said.