Illicit indoor farming
Nearly 300 pot plants found in Navarre house
From Special Reports

Submitted photo Healthy, mature marijuana plants grow in a room of a house at 9419 Bone Bluff Drive in Navarre on Saturday night.

The largest indoor marijuana-growing operation ever located by the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office was discovered inside a Navarre home Saturday night.

Deputies with the Sheriff's Narcotics Division, acting on a call from a landlord, found 282 marijuana plants - most of them mature and ready for harvest - growing in a house at 9419 Bone Bluff Drive in Navarre.

Bone Bluff Drive is located in the eastern part of Navarre near the East Bay River and about a mile north of U.S. Highway 98.

Deputies were dispatched after the homeowner, (who is active duty military, attempted to make contact with the tenant renting his home. The homeowner had been attempting to contact his tenant over a period of time without success.

The homeowner then went to the residence and entered the front door. As soon as he entered, he noticed that his entire house had been converted into an indoor marijuana grow house operation. The homeowner immediately contacted the Sheriff's Office to tell of his findings.

Submitted photo An elaborate duct system was used to supply some 282 plants with oxygen and other chemicals.

When deputies searched the premises, they also discovered that a large detached garage also had been converted into an indoor marijuana grow house. The setup was elaborate, consisting of numerous large grow lights, cooling systems with elaborate duct work, irrigation systems, Ozone machines, timers, and a CO2 tank that funneled gases into the grow rooms.

Some rooms had been converted into 'potting rooms' in which numerous fertilizers and potting soil was found in large bins.

The tenant has not been located, but deputies know the tenant's identity, which is being held as the investigation continues.

The home was in poor condition because of the operation and sustained an extensive amount of damage consisting of modifications and mold.