Authorities say they found tens of thousands of marijuana plants during a major drug bust Wednesday in Menominee and Oconto Counties.
Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen says about one-fifth of those plants were still growing in parts of the Nicolet National Forest and the Menominee Indian Reservation. He says about 10,000 plants were able to be eradicated, and there was evidence of several other areas where growing had taken place.
Oconto County Sheriff Mike Jansen says a combined 300 pounds of marijuana was found in a house near Seymour and a storage unit in Shawano County.
Authorities believe they confiscated marijuana from as many as 50,000 plants. Jansen says the investigation has been going on since last year, after a hunter checking the area came across the suspected growing operation.
Authorities have 12 people in custody following the bust, and they believe at least one of them was involved in the Shawano County growing operations.
Van Hollen says the investigation is ongoing and more arrests are likely.