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California IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON : Suspected Smuggler Is Listed by U.S.

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From Times staff and wire reports

A man accused of operating a fleet of marijuana smuggling ships off the Oregon and California coasts was added to the U.S. marshals list of 15 most-wanted fugitives. Michael Edward McCutcheon, 40, a native of Bakersfield, Calif., is accused of importing marijuana on commercial fishing boats. One of his fishing boats, the 71-foot shrimp trawler California Sun, was run aground by the U.S. Coast Guard near Gold Beach, Ore., in June, 1987, while trying to unload eight tons of marijuana. McCutcheon was indicted in Portland last year for smuggling and operating a continuing criminal enterprise. Authorities estimate he imported more than 150,000 pounds of high-quality Thai marijuana between 1983 and 1987.

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