Carlos Vazguez, Rigaberto Reyes Charged in 500-Plant Pot Operation

Over 500 marijuana plants were ripped from federal soil in a sprawling grow operation deep inside the Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge — and two men, Carlos Vazguez, 26, and Rigaberto Canacho Reyes, 23, are now in federal custody for allegedly running the illicit farm. The discovery, made on October 25, 2016, exposed a five-acre jungle of pot, complete with drying tents, irrigation lines, and sleeping quarters hidden in Howard County, Mo.

Vazguez and Reyes were each charged in separate criminal complaints with possession of 100 or more marijuana plants with intent to distribute, a federal offense carrying heavy penalties. Both were arrested at the scene — Vazguez caught red-handed hauling a tarp loaded with raw marijuana toward a processing tent, according to court affidavits. Reyes was apprehended walking a trail between grow sites, carrying freshly cut plants.

The operation was industrial in scale. Five large tents served as drying and packaging hubs. Fields of five- to six-foot-tall plants had been expertly pruned to maximize yield. Investigators counted more than 500 plants in the ground, hundreds more already harvested and drying, and over 500 stalks littering the ground after processing. Fertilizer piles, pruning tools, and chemical supplies were scattered throughout the site.

A makeshift water system fed the jungle. Black plastic tubing snaked across the terrain, drawing from large storage containers. In the center of the grow, two tents housed sleeping bags and a fire pit — evidence this wasn’t a one-night job, but a long-term encampment run by organized growers exploiting federal land.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service led the raid alongside the Drug Enforcement Administration, Missouri State Highway Patrol, East Central Drug Task Force, and Howard County Sheriff’s Department. Trespassing on protected federal land adds another layer of severity to the charges, turning a drug bust into a full federal prosecution.

The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence Miller in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City, Mo. Vazguez and Reyes remain locked up pending further proceedings, facing years behind bars if convicted.