Five men have been arrested in the investigation surrounding six bodies found last week at a remote dirt crossroads in the Southern California desert in a dispute over marijuana, sheriff’s officials said Monday. (Jan. 29)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The slayings of six men last week at a remote desert crossroads that authorities believe stemmed from a soured illegal cannabis deal spotlighted a longstanding problem in California: a thriving underground marijuana market despite years of legal sales that were expected to stamp it out.
The killings provided a tragic reminder of the violence that can come with illicit cannabis activity, including unlicensed growing operations, brash robberies from legal businesses and furtive illegal shipments to out-of-state vendors.
“The violence is getting worse. The stakes are getting higher,” said dispensary owner Jerred Kiloh, who also heads the United Cannabis Business Association, a Los Angeles-based trade group. He said many of the organization’s members have seen their dispensaries robbed one or more times, sometimes by the same thieves.