port-angeles

By Pepper Fisher

PORT ANGELES – The City of Port Angeles has received an application for a Conditional Use Permit from someone that wants to set up a 3,800 square-foot marijuana growing operation, but the owner of the company, Soho Herbal, LLC, appears to be the same person listed as the owner of the 6 properties that were part of a massive bust of an illegal grow operation in December.

Port Angeles businessman Dong Mai applied for the permit in November, and the application is listed by the City as being completed in January. Along the way, OPNET agents served search warrants on six residences in the Port Angeles area, all owned by Dong Mai.

Despite the seizure of over 3,100 growing pot plants and about 370 pounds of processed marijuana, with a value estimated in excess of $10 million, no charges have ever been filed in the case. Law enforcement has been tight-lipped about the case from the outset, but we asked Chief Criminal Deputy Brian King if he could give us an update on the investigation.

“I can tell you that we are in the process of making a formal submission to the Prosecutor’s Office on our case file for the Clallam County Prosecutor’s Office to make a charging decision in reference to those marijuana grows. We do expect a charging decision in the coming weeks, and that could happen as soon as next week.”

The application is for a property at 4308 Nicholas Road, near the top of the Tumwater Truck Route, and is asking for the potential for future expansion of an additional 12,000 square feet.

The City of Port Angeles has announced a public hearing on the proposal, set for March 26 at 10:00am.