This time, the clearing of the cannabis farm was quite fruitful.
Almost 2 tons of mature and immature cannabis plants were seized. Of course, this is the weight of the complete plants; the amount would definitely be much less if processed into market-ready cannabis.
12 suspects were arrested, including the two masterminds, the Beins brothers.
7 firearms were seized, including 4 handguns, 2 shotguns, and one double-barreled shotgun, all of which were legally purchased and owned by the Beins brothers.
Last but most importantly, the funds—more than 800,000 in cash were found at the farm and in the Beins brothers' home.
Given the scale of the farm raided, if they had started planting after the Frog gang was eradicated, they had at most harvested once; the second season had not yet matured for sale. They shouldn't have had this much income, but currently, the source of the funds has not been disclosed.
Previously, drug-related cases were mostly handled by the DEA in Little Rock's office; this major bust was a success for the county police themselves, which was already a big event for the media.
James, the Chief of Police, personally held a small press conference in the lobby of the county police headquarters, attended by local television and newspaper reporters from Little Rock.
Apart from Cage and Sergeant Eli, other officers had returned to their respective divisions to continue their duties.
Jimmy and other headquarters staff coordinated to pack all the seized cannabis into black plastic bags, placed beside the podium, and on the other side was a table with 7 firearms. As for the cash, being more sensitive, it was not displayed.
Once the reporters were seated, Chief James approached the podium.
"Thank you all for attending this press conference hosted by the Plaskey County Sheriff's Office, regarding the cannabis farm case we cracked on December 19th, which was yesterday. On both sides here, you see the cannabis we seized and the weapons found at the scene."
Chief James gestured to either side.
"Based on intelligence, after a long-term surveillance and tracking, we had detailed information about the suspects' cannabis farm. Yesterday, led by Sergeant Cage and Sergeant Eli, our officers raided the farm and captured the suspects on site.
After our initial tally, we seized nearly 2 tons of fresh cannabis, which is in these black plastic bags on the left. These will be documented later and handed over to the DEA for destruction.
The 7 firearms we found were all legally purchased by the suspects, but they were not used for home defense, but brought to the cannabis farm, all found at the scene of the farm."
After briefly introducing the case, Chief James began taking questions from the reporters.
"Could you please reveal some information about the suspects caught this time, Chief James?"
"Sorry, as the case is still being processed, we cannot disclose any information about the suspects at this time."
"OK, then let me ask about a police-related question. We heard that a police officer was nicknamed the Butcher because he killed too many suspects. Could you introduce this officer?"
"Sorry, your question does not pertain to the scope of this case briefing. If there are no further questions, this briefing is concluded."
Chief James immediately ended the press conference and returned to his office, while the others began to move the bags of cannabis and firearms, which would be temporarily kept in the evidence room before being transferred to the DEA for destruction.
The police went about their tasks, leaving the reporters and cameramen completely sidelined, unattended.
This reporter's question hit right on the sensitive nerve of the police department, which James had feared. For the police department and their sibling agencies, having an officer who could be nicknamed meant having a truly elite officer, but to outsiders, the nickname meant something different.
As a robust department, having a Butcher among the police implied more casualties and potential dangers to outsiders, and once this was confirmed, it would be tough for Jimmy to stay in a police role, especially as a Patrol Officer who regularly interacts with the public. His only options would be in departments like logistics or SWAT.
Chief James certainly did not want to simply discard Jimmy, a useful man. Now working in headquarters support, divisions across the department were well aware of Jimmy's contributions. In any critical situation needing a breakthrough, the benefits of having one's own skilled hand were clear to those involved.
Moreover, Jimmy had a very positive image at the police station, never complaining about overtime, with a friendly personality, no bad habits, and none of the arrogance often seen in the young. If it weren't for his young age and being unmarried, he would be the perfect model of a good person and colleague. Well, Jimmy was only 20 years old, although his driver's license said 24.
With the support of colleagues intent on protecting their own, the reporters returned without success, mainly because they weren't actually planning to make a big deal out of it. After all, apart from the county police, plenty of other county departments and Little Rock police knew who the Butcher was, and finding the answer wasn't difficult. This question was simply random probing without expecting much in return.
Jimmy was also at the scene, and he got chills when he heard such a question. He would have to be more careful in the future, maybe wear a mask when on duty? No, scratch that, he wasn't part of any secretive agencies, and wearing a mask would be too conspicuous.