https://www.wmtw.com/article/maine-grow-houses-marijuana-enterprise-chinese-nationals/65339934

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts says several Maine properties were used as grow houses in a multimillion-dollar conspiracy to cultivate and distribute marijuana across the Northeast.

Seven Chinese nationals were charged in connection with the drug trafficking enterprise, which also involved money laundering and human smuggling, according to federal prosecutors.

The following people have been indicted and were arrested Tuesday morning:

Jianxiong Chen, 39, of Braintree, Massachusetts, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana; one count of money laundering conspiracy; 11 counts of money laundering; and one count of bringing aliens into the United States.

Yuxiong Wu, 36, of Weymouth, Massachusetts, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana; one count of money laundering conspiracy; and four counts of money laundering.

Dinghui Li, 38, of Braintree, Massachusetts, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana; one count of money laundering conspiracy; and two counts of money laundering.

Dechao Ma, 35, of Braintree, Massachusetts, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana; one count of money laundering conspiracy; and two counts of money laundering.

Peng Lian Zhu, 35, of Melrose, Massachusetts, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and one count of money laundering conspiracy.

Hongbin Wu, 35, of Quincy, Massachusetts, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana.

Yanrong Zhu, 47, of Greenfield, Massachusetts, and Brooklyn, New York, was also indicted on one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana — but the U.S. Attorney's Office said he remained a fugitive as of Tuesday evening.

According to the charging documents, the defendants were accused of owning, operating or partnering with a network of interconnected grow houses in Massachusetts and Maine starting around January 2020. The documents state the grow houses — including Massachusetts properties in Braintree, Melrose and Greenfield — were used to cultivate and distribute kilogram-sized quantities of marijuana in bulk.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said the grow house operators maintained contact with each other through a list of marijuana cultivators and distributors in the region who were from or who had ties to China. The list was called the "East Coast Contact List."

According to prosecutors, Jianxiong Chen controlled several grow houses in Maine and a home in Braintree, Massachusetts, the latter of which served as a base of operations for the enterprise. Prosecutors said marijuana manufactured by the interconnected grow house network, as well as bulk cash from dealers, was delivered to and redistributed by Chen at his Braintree residence.

The charging documents state co-conspirators concealed the marijuana and cash they were delivering to Chen inside the engine compartments of their vehicles. Prosecutors said that during a search of the Braintree home in October 2024, more than $270,000 in cash was recovered from the house and from a Porsche vehicle in the driveway, while several Chinese passports and other identification documents were found in a safe.

Data extracted from Chen's cellphone revealed that he helped smuggle Chinese nationals into the United States, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Chen is also accused of putting those people to work at one of the grow houses he controlled and kept possession of their passports until they repaid him for the cost associated with smuggling them into the country.

Prosecutors said the profits from the marijuana sales totaled in the millions of dollars and were used to purchase luxury homes, automobiles, jewelry and other items in Massachusetts, including real estate in an effort to expand the enterprise.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said October 2024 searches of grow houses in Braintree, where Dechao Ma resided, and Melrose, where Peng Lian Zhu lived, resulted in the seizure of more than 109 kilograms of marijuana, nearly $200,000 in cash and numerous luxury items, including a gold Rolex watch that still had a $65,000 price tag on it.

Prosecutors also said the enterprise conducted bulk cash transactions with operators located in the Eastern District of New York. According to court documents, Hongbin Wu and Yanrong Zhu were stopped by law enforcement in June 2023 after leaving a grow house in Greenfield, Massachusetts, and $36,900 in cash was seized from them.

Authorities said the charge of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, at least two years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.

The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $500,000, or twice the amount involved, whichever is greater.

The charges of money laundering each provide for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $500,000, or twice the amount involved, whichever is greater.

The charge of bringing aliens into the United States provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of three years and up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.