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Marijuana Kingpin Pleads Guilty
A Philadelphia man has pleaded guilty to his role in organizing and financing a network of high-tech, indoor marijuana grow facilities stretching from Florida to Connecticut.
Anthony Bui, 57, of Philadelphia, the owner of Asian Fish Inc., of Egg Harbor, N.J., pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to conspiracy to manufacture more than 1,000 marijuana plants, conspiracy to distribute more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana, and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.
According to court documents, on June 30, 2005, one of Bui’s marijuana grow facilities in Staley, N.C., caught fire. When volunteer firefighters arrived, they discovered that Bui and his associates were in the process of converting a former chicken warehouse into a massive marijuana grow operation.
Additional investigation by DEA agents led to the discovery of three additional marijuana grow facilities in Jacksonville, Fla., New Britain, Conn., and Birdsboro, Penn. Each of Bui’s facilities cost up to $100,000 to set up and equip with sophisticated lighting, irrigation and ventilation systems.
For example, according to court documents, the facility in Birdsboro was capable of producing 25 pounds of marijuana every few weeks. Each pound of marijuana could be sold for approximately $2,500. Bui used the proceeds from his marijuana distribution activities to finance his marijuana manufacturing operations.
Bui faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 10 years on the manufacturing conspiracy charge and on the distribution charge, as well as a fine of up to $4 million per count. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 11, 2011, at 11:00 a.m.
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Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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