Owner of Sophisticated ‘Pot’ Farm Convicted
A Palmdale contractor faces a maximum sentence of life in prison for financing a sophisticated underground marijuana farm that was raided in the Antelope Valley last year, the U.S. attorney’s office said Friday.
After deliberating three hours, a federal court jury in Los Angeles on Thursday found Richard E. Yerger, 61, guilty of conspiracy to possess marijuana and possession with intent to distribute the drug.
Yerger, who remained in custody without bail, is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30. Federal officials said Yerger’s farm in Llano, a tiny community east of Palmdale, could have produced more than $35 million worth of marijuana annually. But it was raided Nov. 16, before the first harvest.
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