Berkeley Resident Sentenced in Marijuana Cultivation Conspiracy

SAN FRANCISCO—On June 22, 2012, Huy Trinh was sentenced to 15 years in prison for masterminding a large-scale marijuana cultivation conspiracy, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced. The sentence, handed down by United States District Court Judge Susan Illston, also included a five-year period of supervised release and a restitution order of $74,000. Judge Illston previously sentenced Andy Wong, 50, of Oakland, California, and Lan Jin, 42, of Berkeley, California, to prison terms of 24 months and 12 months, respectively, for their roles in the conspiracy.

The case against Trinh, 45, stemmed from search warrants executed by federal agents on April 29, 2010, at six indoor marijuana grow houses in the East Bay. Agents found 1,198 marijuana plants: 623 marijuana plants at Wong’s residence in Oakland and 198 marijuana plants at Trinh’s residence in Berkeley. At Trinh’s residence, agents also found a .22 caliber firearm in the same bedroom as five pounds of processed marijuana.

On March 23, 2012, Trinh pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. In pleading guilty, Trinh admitted managing the marijuana grow sites and stealing electricity from Pacific Gas and Electric Company to support the marijuana growing operation.

Aaron Wegner is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who prosecuted the case, with the assistance of legal technician Erica Doerr. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, together with agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The investigation was conducted and funded by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a multi-agency task force that coordinates long-term narcotics trafficking investigations.