[House Hearing, 119 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
INVASION OF THE HOMELAND: HOW CHINA IS
USING ILLEGAL MARIJUANA TO BUILD A CRIMI-
NAL NETWORK ACROSS AMERICA
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON
OVERSIGHT, INVESTIGATIONS,
AND ACCOUNTABILITY
OF THE
COMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
SEPTEMBER 18, 2025
__________
Serial No. 119-27
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Homeland Security
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
62-705 PDF WASHINGTON : 2026
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COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY
Andrew R. Garbarino, New York, Chairman
Michael T. McCaul, Texas, Vice Bennie G. Thompson, Mississippi,
Chair Ranking Member
Michael Guest, Mississippi Eric Swalwell, California
Carlos A. Gimenez, Florida J. Luis Correa, California
August Pfluger, Texas Shri Thanedar, Michigan
Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Seth Magaziner, Rhode Island
Tony Gonzales, Texas Daniel S. Goldman, New York
Morgan Luttrell, Texas Delia C. Ramirez, Illinois
Dale W. Strong, Alabama Timothy M. Kennedy, New York
Josh Brecheen, Oklahoma LaMonica McIver, New Jersey
Elijah Crane, Arizona Julie Johnson, Texas, Vice Ranking
Andrew Ogles, Tennessee Member
Sheri Biggs, South Carolina Pablo Jose Hernandez, Puerto Rico
Gabe Evans, Colorado Nellie Pou, New Jersey
Ryan Mackenzie, Pennsylvania Troy A. Carter, Louisiana
Brad Knott, North Carolina Al Green, Texas
Vacant Vacant
Vacant
Keighle Joyce, Staff Director
Hope Goins, Minority Staff Director
Sean Corcoran, Chief Clerk
------
SUBCOMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT, INVESTIGATIONS, AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Josh Brecheen, Oklahoma, Chairman
Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Shri Thanedar, Michigan, Ranking
Dale W. Strong, Alabama Member
Andrew Ogles, Tennessee Delia C. Ramirez, Illinois
Brad Knott, North Carolina Troy A. Carter, Louisiana
Andrew R. Garbarino, New York, (ex Al Green, Texas
officio) Bennie G. Thompson, Mississippi
(ex officio)
Vacant, Subcommittee Staff Director
Lisa Canini, Minority Subcommittee Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Statements
The Honorable Josh Brecheen, a Representative in Congress From
the State of Oklahoma, and Chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight,
Investigations, and Accountability:
Oral Statement................................................. 1
Prepared Statement............................................. 3
The Honorable Shri Thanedar, a Representative in Congress From
the State of Michigan, and Ranking Member, Subcommittee on
Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability:
Oral Statement................................................. 4
Prepared Statement............................................. 5
The Honorable Bennie G. Thompson, a Representative in Congress
From the State of Mississippi, and Ranking Member, Committee on
Homeland Security:
Prepared Statement............................................. 6
Witnesses
Mr. Donnie Anderson, Director, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics:
Oral Statement................................................. 7
Prepared Statement............................................. 9
Mr. Paul J. Larkin, John, Barbara, and Victoria Rumpel Senior
Legal Research Fellow, Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and
Judicial Studies, The Heritage Foundation:
Oral Statement................................................. 10
Prepared Statement............................................. 12
Mr. Christopher Urben, Managing Director, Nardello & Co.:
Oral Statement................................................. 20
Prepared Statement............................................. 21
For the Record
The Honorable Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Representative in
Congress From the State of Georgia:
Article, The Maine Wire, November 8, 2023...................... 26
The Honorable Delia C. Ramirez, a Representative in Congress From
the State of Illinois:
Article, Chicago Tribune, September 17, 2025................... 34
Article, Chicago Reader, September 15, 2025.................... 35
The Honorable Troy A. Carter, a Representative in Congress From
the State of Louisiana:
Letter From the US Cannabis Roundtable......................... 41
The Honorable Andrew Ogles, a Representative in Congress From the
State of Tennessee:
Resolution Number 25109, Siskiyou County, California Board of
Supervisors.................................................. 45
The Honorable Brad Knott, a Representative in Congress From the
State of North Carolina:
Press Release, U.S. Attorney's Office, District of
Massachusetts................................................ 60
Appendix I
Supplemental Material Submitted by Donnie Anderson:
Briefing Report................................................ 71
Photos......................................................... 81
Article........................................................ 90
Oklahoma Court Records......................................... 99
Appendix II
The Honorable Josh Brecheen, a Representative in Congress From
the State of Oklahoma, and Chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight,
Investigations, and Accountability:
Statement of Alexander Gray, CEO, American Global Strategies... 117
Supplemental Material Submitted by Steven Robinson, Editor-in-
Chief, The Maine Wire; Director, ``High Crimes: How Chinese
Mafia Took Over Rural America''................................ 118
INVASION OF THE HOMELAND: HOW CHINA IS USING ILLEGAL MARIJUANA TO BUILD
A CRIMINAL NETWORK ACROSS AMERICA
----------
Thursday, September 18, 2025
U.S. House of Representatives,
Committee on Homeland Security,
Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations,
and Accountability,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittees met, pursuant to notice, at 10:14 a.m.,
in room 310, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. Josh Brecheen
(Chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Representatives Brecheen, Greene, Strong, Ogles,
Knott, Thanedar, Ramirez, Carter, and Green.
Chairman Brecheen. All right. Good morning. The Committee
on Homeland Security, Oversight, Investigations, Accountability
under the broader Homeland Security Committee will come to
order. The purpose of today's hearing is to examine how China
is using illegal marijuana to build a criminal network across
America. Without objection, the Chair is authorized to declare
the committee in recess at any point.
I now recognize myself for an opening statement.
Today the Oversight Investigations Accountability Committee
is holding this hearing on how the use of illegal marijuana has
tied into the criminal network tracing to China is impacting
the United States.
First, for order of business, an announcement, the
gentleman from Texas, Al Green, will, from this point forward,
be serving on the Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability
Subcommittee for the remainder of the 119th Congress, and we
look forward to working with him.
We are here today to talk about an important issue,
significant national security implications. This issue has been
prevalent not just in Oklahoma, my home State, but in many
other States, Maine, California, and all across our homeland.
Let's paint the picture together.
A group of Chinese nationals affiliated with a foreign
criminal organization crosses the Southern Border, makes their
way into rural Oklahoma. With them are workers who have been
lured under the false promise of good jobs in the United
States. Once in Oklahoma, these Chinese nationals approach a
local resident with an offer they cannot refuse. They offer the
resident several hundreds of thousands of dollars purchasing--
using their time, their identity to purchase a nearby tract of
land. In return, the resident gets to keep a share of the money
with no questions asked. The deal is quick and it is simple.
In a matter of days, this newly-purchased land becomes the
site of a large-scale illegal marijuana grow operation. The
workers find themselves forced to work 14-hour days under the
watch of armed guards, all while being confined to small living
quarters, minimal running water, or air conditioning. The smell
of toxic fumes, fumigation from pesticides that are lit on fire
that we know have caused major health consequences, banned in
this country, are utilized for these grow operations. Hundreds
of pounds of illegal contaminated marijuana is then produced,
ends up in the hands of people all over the United States, from
Oklahoma to New York.
This is just one example of how Chinese grow operations
come to operation in communities all across the country.
Oklahoma has had thousands of these operations activate at one
time. Sadly, as we learned today, this is only scratching the
surface of what these Chinese-affiliated criminal groups are
doing. Many Chinese illegal operations serve as fronts for a
wider criminal enterprise, including human and drug
trafficking, prostitutions, weapons smuggling, and money
laundering.
While the example I highlighted takes place in our home
State of Oklahoma, similar patterns are repeated in other
States like Maine, Massachusetts, California. In fact, there
are thousands of these grow operations dispersed through our
entire country, including Tribal lands and national parks.
We have a really excellent panel of expert witnesses before
us today who are going to walk us through this issue and how it
affects the homeland security posture. Specifically, I would
like to focus our conversation on the serious crimes taking
place inside of these illegal grow sites, as well as how
Chinese transnational criminal organizations, or TCOs, many
with ties to the--directly ties to the Chinese Communist Party,
are setting up these sites all across the United States as they
expand an underground criminal network in our backyard.
We are holding this hearing today because we have enabled
these foreign organizations with potential links to the CCP, to
build up a sophisticated network throughout the United States,
which facilitates a wide range of other criminal activity and
presents a national security threat. This is a convergence of
organized crime, human and drug trafficking, public health
risks, all operating at scale and sophistication, crossing
State and national lines beyond the normal capabilities of
State and local law enforcement to combat. These agencies need
the help of Federal law enforcement to unravel these criminal
networks. In fact, some of the foreign nationals running these
grow operations are more heavily armed than local law
enforcement.
One of my field reps in Oklahoma heard from a journeyman
electrician, who was hired to do some work on a rural property.
When he arrived at the site, he found what appeared to be a
large, foreign-run marijuana grow house and he personally
observed an armory of dozens of assault rifles and ammunition
crates. This network must be uncovered and eliminated from our
homeland, and it is really that simple. The potential threat
that comes from having a fully operational criminal network
associated with top foreign adversary on our soil is too great
to ignore. I look forward to an informative and productive
discussion.
[The statement of Chairman Brecheen follows:]
Statement of Chairman Josh Brecheen
September 18, 2025
Good afternoon and welcome to the Subcommittee on Oversight,
Investigations, and Accountability hearing on how China is using
illegal marijuana to build a criminal network across the United States.
First, I would like to welcome the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Al
Green, who will serve on the Oversight, Investigations, and
Accountability subcommittee for the remainder of the 119th Congress. I
look forward to working with you.
We are here today to talk about an important issue with potentially
significant national security implications. This issue has been
prevalent not just in my State of Oklahoma, but in many other States
from Maine to California, all across our homeland.
Let me paint you a picture: A group of Chinese nationals affiliated
with a criminal organization cross the Southern Border and make their
way to rural Oklahoma. With them are workers who have been lured under
false promises of good jobs in the United States.
When in Oklahoma, some Chinese nationals approach a local resident
with an offer they can't refuse. The Chinese nationals offer the
resident several hundred thousand dollars in cash to purchase a nearby
tract of land under the resident's name. In return, the resident gets
to keep a share of the money with no questions asked. The deal is quick
and simple.
In a matter of days, the newly-purchased land becomes the site of a
large-scale, illegal marijuana grow operation.
The workers find themselves forced to work 14-hour days under the
watch of armed guards--all while being confined to small living
quarters with minimal running water or air conditioning.
The smell of toxic, illegally-smuggled Chinese pesticides used to
grow the marijuana fills the air--causing serious health issues.
Hundreds of pounds of illegal--and potentially contaminated--
marijuana is produced and eventually ends up in our communities,
anywhere from Oklahoma to New York.
This is just one hypothetical example of a Chinese grow operation
in my State of Oklahoma--a State that has had up to 12,000 of these
operations on-going at one time.
Sadly, as we will learn today, this is only scratching the surface
of these Chinese criminal enterprises. Many Chinese-operated illegal
grow operations serve as fronts for a wider criminal enterprise,
including human and drug trafficking, prostitution, weapons smuggling,
and money laundering.
And while the example I highlighted takes place in my home State of
Oklahoma, similar patterns are repeated in other States like Maine,
Massachusetts, and California. In fact, there are thousands of these
grow operations dispersed throughout our entire country--including in
our national parks and tribal lands.
We have an excellent panel of expert witnesses before us today who
are going to walk us through how this issue affects the homeland.
Before we get to their testimony, I want to offer an important point of
clarification.
The goal of today's hearing is not to debate the issue of
decriminalizing or rescheduling marijuana at the Federal level.
Everyone has opinions on that, but I want to focus our conversation on
the serious crimes taking place inside of these illegal grow sites, as
well as how Chinese transnational criminal organizations, many with
ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), are setting up these sites
across the homeland as they expand an underground criminal network
right here in our backyard.
We are holding this hearing today because we have enabled potential
agents of the Chinese Communist Party to build a sophisticated and
concerted criminal network, under the guise of these marijuana grow
operations, throughout the United States, which enables a wide range of
criminal activity and presents unique threats to our national security.
This is a convergence of organized crime, human and drug
trafficking, and public health risks, which all operate at a scale and
sophistication that crosses State and national lines and is beyond the
normal capabilities of State and local law enforcement. These agencies
need the help of Federal law enforcement to unravel these criminal
networks.
This network must be uncovered and eliminated from our homeland.
It's really that simple. The potential threats associated with having a
fully operational criminal network from our No. 1 foreign adversary on
our soil are too great to ignore.
I look forward to an informative and productive discussion with our
witnesses today, and I now turn it over to the Ranking Member for his
opening remarks.
Chairman Brecheen. I now turn it over to Ranking Member
Thanedar for his opening remarks.
Mr. Thanedar. Good morning and thank you, Chairman. Good
morning to all of our witnesses here. I want to welcome my
colleague Congressman Al Green from Texas on this committee and
look forward to his contribution to our proceedings here.
Now, if you take a stroll through the District of
Columbia's neighborhoods, you are likely to encounter the
National Guard planting flowers or picking up trash and Federal
agents making traffic stops. This supposed crackdown on crime
has also played out in Los Angeles, is unfolding in Chicago,
soon coming to Memphis, and being threatened by the Vice
President that they are on their way or coming to Detroit if
needed. Trump's occupation of America's largest city is
reducing the Federal Government's ability to pursue serious
complex crimes. HSI agents have paused pursuing human
traffickers, DEA agents are not uncovering drug rings, and FBI
agents stopping investigating financial fraud. Instead, they
issue citations for open containers of alcohol, fare evasion,
and traffic offenses. The same Federal agents who investigate
money laundering and organized crime are also being deployed to
Home Depot parking lots to arrest migrants looking for work.
Who is investigating the thousands of illegal marijuana
farms that currently exist in this country? I am not talking
about someone who is growing a handful of pot plants consistent
with their State's law and regulations. I am referring to
marijuana that is being grown by organized crime in our Federal
forests, business districts, and suburban neighborhoods,
perhaps even at the house next door. These illegal grow sites
are run by Mexican cartels, Cuban drug traffickers, and,
increasingly, Chinese organized crime.
Just a few months ago, in my home State of Michigan, local
law enforcement arrested 4 Chinese nationals after discovering
over 5,000 marijuana plants worth around $5 million in a
warehouse. The billions of dollars in proceeds from illegal
marijuana help finance China's Belt and Road Initiatives, a
plan to wrestle global influence away from the United States
through foreign investment in developing nations that the Trump
administration has cut aid to. The illegal marijuana proceeds
also fuel Mexican cartels that traffic deadly fentanyl to the
United States.
The marijuana black market is riddled with human
trafficking, human smuggling, and forced labor. All too often,
migrants are lured to farm with the promise of decent work.
Once they arrive, their identification is taken away and they
are forced to work 16 hours a day and live in substandard
conditions. Illegal marijuana cultivation sites are also
stealing our scarce resources, such as water and electricity,
while poisoning public lands and banned toxic chemicals and
pesticides. Illegal marijuana farms are a threat to our
national security, human rights, and the environment.
The Federal Government has had some successes through the
Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. For example, in
January 2024, a Federal jury found 2 Chinese nationals guilty
of possessing and distributing marijuana. Over a 7-month
period, they shipped 56,000 pounds of marijuana from Oklahoma
to the East Coast. In June 2024, the Justice Department charged
associates of Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel for conspiring with
groups linked to Chinese underground banking to launder drug
trafficking proceeds.
Despite these wins and others, the Trump administration has
proposed eliminating funding for the OCDETF. I am leery that
OCDETF is being replaced with Homeland Security Task Force that
will further elevate immigration enforcement at the expense of
other law enforcement missions, including those best suited to
tackle illegal marijuana. The multifaceted threats posed by
illegal marijuana farms run by organized crime require a
coordinated national strategy and the resources to carry out
that strategy.
I look forward to hearing from today's witnesses about the
resources required of the Federal Government to snuff our
illegal marijuana.
Thank you all. I yield back, Mr. Chair.
[The statement of Ranking Member Thanedar follows:]
Statement of Ranking Member Shri Thanedar
September 18, 2025
If you take a stroll through the District of Columbia's
neighborhoods, you're likely to encounter the National Guard planting
flowers or picking up trash, and Federal agents making traffic stops.
This supposed crackdown on crime has also played out in Los Angeles, is
unfolding in Chicago, and soon coming to Memphis.
Trump's occupation of America's largest city is reducing the
Federal Government's ability to pursue serious, complex crimes. HSI
agents have paused pursuing human traffickers. DEA agents are not
uncovering drug rings. And FBI agents stopped investigating financial
fraud. Instead, they issue citations for open containers of alcohol,
fare evasion, and traffic offenses. These same Federal agents who
investigate money laundering and organized crime are also being
deployed to Home Depot parking lots to arrest migrants looking for
work.
Who is investigating the thousands of illegal marijuana farms that
currently exist in this country? And I'm not talking about someone who
is growing a handful of pot plants consistent with their State's laws
and regulations. I'm referring to marijuana that is being grown by
organized crime in our Federal forests, business districts, and
suburban neighborhoods--perhaps even at the house next door.
These illegal grow sites are run by Mexican cartels, Cuban drug
traffickers, and increasingly, Chinese organized crime. Just a few
months ago, in my home State of Michigan, local law enforcement
arrested 4 Chinese nationals after discovering over 5,000 marijuana
plants, worth around $5 million, in a warehouse.
The billions of dollars in proceeds from illegal marijuana help
finance China's Belt and Road Initiative--a plan to wrestle global
influence away from the United States through foreign investment in
developing nations that the Trump administration has cut aid to. The
illegal marijuana proceeds also fuel Mexican cartels that traffic
deadly fentanyl to the United States. The marijuana black market is
riddled with human trafficking, human smuggling, and forced labor.
All too often, migrants are lured to farms with the promise of
decent work. Once they arrive, their identification is taken, and they
are forced to work 16 hours a day and live in substandard conditions.
Illegal marijuana cultivation sites are also stealing our scarce
resources, such as water and electricity, while poisoning public lands
with banned toxic chemicals and pesticides. Illegal marijuana farms are
a threat to our national security, human rights, and the environment.
The Federal Government has had some successes through the Organized
Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).
For example, in January 2024, a Federal jury found 2 Chinese
Nationals guilty of possessing and distributing marijuana. Over a 7-
month period they shipped 56,000 pounds of marijuana from Oklahoma to
the East Coast. In June 2024, the Justice Department charged associates
of Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel for conspiring with groups linked to
Chinese underground banking to launder drug trafficking proceeds.
Despite these wins and others, the Trump administration has proposed
eliminating funding for OCDETF.
I am leery that OCDETF is being replaced with Homeland Security
Task Forces that will further elevate immigration enforcement at the
expense of other law enforcement missions, including those best suited
to tackle illegal marijuana. The multi-faceted threats posed by illegal
marijuana farms run by organized crime require a coordinated national
strategy and the resources to carry out that strategy.
I look forward to hearing from today's witnesses about the
resources required of the Federal Government to snuff out illegal
marijuana.
Chairman Brecheen. The Ranking Member yields. Thank you.
To the other Members of the committee, you are reminded
that opening statements may be submitted for the record.
[The statement of Ranking Member Thompson follows:]
Statement of Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson
September 18, 2025
Despite the extreme title of today's hearing, the topic is a
serious one. Illegal marijuana farms operated by foreign criminal
organizations are a threat to security, human rights, and the
environment. Almost no State has been untouched by illegal marijuana
farms. From Maine to Oklahoma to Colorado and California, authorities
have played a sophisticated game of whack-a-mole with illegal marijuana
farms and the criminal organizations who operate them.
Mexican cartels, Cuban gangs, Chinese organized crime, and American
locals have established themselves throughout the country to make low-
risk, fast money by growing illicit marijuana. But Chinese organized
crime quietly became the money launderers for Mexican cartels and other
criminal actors, then they invested those proceeds in the illegal
marijuana trade. Today, Chinese organized crime is the dominant player
in a field of illegal marijuana growers. The threat is not just from
the illegally grown and unregulated marijuana that is entering the
black market covered in chemicals and virtually untraceable. The
international criminal organizations that have taken over the illegal
marijuana trade are stealing water from critical sources in drought-
ridden States.
They are covering marijuana plants and the ground around them with
rodenticide, insecticide, and other poisons that enter water supplies,
destroy farmland, and end up in the final product these gangs sell on
the black market. They rely on human trafficking and forced labor to
grow, cultivate, and tend these illegal marijuana grows. And their ill-
gotten gains are reinvested in criminal activities that undermine
American security at home and abroad. It is clear that illegal
marijuana farms pose a complex threat that requires a coordinated
national strategy to combat.
Sadly, at a time when the United States needs a coordinated
national strategy to fight back against Chinese criminal organizations,
Mexican cartels, and other illicit marijuana growers, the Trump
administration is eliminating the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task
Force (OCDETF). At the same time, the Trump administration is
myopically focusing law enforcement resources on deporting people
rather than investigating the illegal marijuana grows that are
funneling money to international crime and enabling human trafficking.
I look forward to hearing from today's witnesses about the illegal
marijuana farms that are fueling international criminal organizations
in our communities. I hope my Republican colleagues will take the
lessons we learn to heart and work with Democrats to ensure the Federal
Government has the resources and capability to combat this crime.
Chairman Brecheen. I am pleased to have a panel of
witnesses expert in their field before us today to speak to
this very important topic. I ask that our witnesses please
stand and raise their right hand.
[Witnesses sworn.]
Chairman Brecheen. Let the record reflect the witnesses
have answered in the affirmative. Thank you and please be
seated.
I would now like to formally introduce our witnesses. Mr.
Donnie Anderson is director of the Oklahoma Bureau of
Narcotics. A native of Oklahoma, he has served in law
enforcement for nearly 3 decades. Mr. Paul Larkin is a senior
legal research fellow at the Heritage Foundation. He has worked
in Federal Government at the Department of Justice and the
EPA's Criminal Investigative Division, as well as the private
sector as a public policy researcher. Our third witness, Mr.
Chris Urben, is a managing director of Nardello & Company, a
global investigations consulting firm, and previously served as
a special agent senior official at the Drug Enforcement
Administration for 24 years. Thank you to all the witnesses for
being here today.
I now recognize Director Anderson for 5 minutes for his
opening statement. I think that you traveled the longest from
Oklahoma, Mr. Anderson, to be here. Thank you for being here.
STATEMENT OF DONNIE ANDERSON, DIRECTOR, OKLAHOMA BUREAU OF
NARCOTICS
Mr. Anderson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Members, and
Members of the committee for inviting me to participate in
today's hearings and your interest in Chinese-owned marijuana
farms. This topic is not of only a public safety interest, but
also the interest of America's national security.
My name is Donnie Anderson. I am the director of the
Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics. I've dedicated over 34 years of
my life to public safety and drug enforcement in the State of
Oklahoma.
I can say without hesitation that the impact of black
market marijuana in Oklahoma is unlike anything I've ever
encountered in my career. What is even more alarming is the
growing influence and involvement of the Chinese Communist
Party in this illicit industry. Please understand that what I
share today represents only a fraction of the broader threat we
face. Several investigations remain open and I am unable to
comment on them further without jeopardizing the integrity,
endangering the brave men and women at the Bureau who are
investigating these cases, or violating the laws to prohibit
disclosure of active investigations.
In 2018, Oklahoma voters approved Medical Marijuana State
Question 788, drafted by marijuana advocates. Unfortunately,
the law imposed no limits on the number of grow operations or
the quantity of plants each could cultivate. This lack of
regulations led to a staggering oversupply. Between March 2024
to March 2025, licensed grow sites reported 87,210,960 plants
in the State of Oklahoma. Yet dispensaries sold just a little
over 1.6 million pounds of marijuana in a dispensary. Given
that one plant typically yields 1 pound of processed marijuana,
over 85 million plants are unaccounted for, representing an
estimated $153 billion in missing product and proceeds. To put
this in perspective, as of September 9, 2025, Oklahoma has
324,850 licensed medical marijuana patients.
The scale of unreported inventory is deeply troubling,
especially considering the black market producers routinely
underreport their plant count. Oklahoma's medical marijuana
framework has inadvertently opened the door to international
organized crime. Criminal actors exploit the system to produce
high-potency marijuana for black market distribution, fueling
what is now estimated to be $153 billion illicit industry. A
particular concern is a high prevalence of Chinese nationals
involved in these operations. Their presence has a profound
effect on both our State and national security. Consider the
following examples.
In 2022, 4 Chinese nationals were executed in an illegal
marijuana farm near Hennessey, Oklahoma. A fifth individual was
seriously injured. The operation used a fraudulent license
obtained via a straw ownership. April 2024, law enforcement
arrested multiple suspects in connection with a robbery and
homicide at a grove site in Okfuskee County in Oklahoma. The
victim, 53-year-old Harry Dam, was fatally shot. July 2025, a
Canadian national was found murdered execution-style at a grow
operation near Lake Thunderbird, just east of Norman, Oklahoma.
The death is believed to be the result of a targeted robbery.
The investigation remains on-going currently.
These incidents are just a few among many. Beyond these
murders, State authorities have documented a sharp rise in
violent crime linked to black market marijuana operations
masquerading as legal enterprises. The Oklahoma Bureau of
Narcotics reports associated crimes, including human and sex
trafficking, money laundering, illegal gambling, extortion,
theft of water and electricity. Our agency currently employs 1
Mandarin-speaking agent. However, this is insufficient when
suspects communicate in Cantonese and Fujianese, languages that
Mandarin speakers cannot reliably translate.
Compounding this issue is the wide-spread use of WeChat, a
Chinese-owned platform used for both communication and
financial transactions. Because WeChat is based in mainland
China and encrypted, U.S. law enforcement cannot serve legal
process or conduct electronic surveillance as we would with
domestic platforms. These apps fall outside the scope of the
Communication Act of 1996 and Electronic Communications Privacy
Act of 1986, making them a major obstacle in our
investigations.
Oklahoma law requires marijuana business owners to be State
residents with at least 2 years of residency. Yet nearly all
Chinese-operated grows circumvent this requirement through
fraud and straw ownership. In one instance, a single Oklahoman
was listed as the owner of approximately 300 marijuana farms in
Oklahoma. This wide-spread fraud is facilitated by consulting
firms, real estate agents, and attorneys who help establish
these shell operations.
Alarmingly, many of these groves are located near critical
infrastructure, including military bases and pipelines. For
example, in an on-going investigation, the Department of
Defense reported suspicious activity at a marijuana grow
operated by an ethnic Chinese group located adjacent to the
McAlester Ammunition Plant. This ammunition plant is the
largest in the United States that is also responsible for
manufacturing the MOAB, Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, and
houses close to the third of the Department--it maintains a
third of the Department of Defense's munitions stockpile.
That's where it's at in McAlester, Oklahoma.
This is no doubt the Chinese government has shown interest
in Oklahoma's marijuana authority. We have documented financial
transfers to the bank of China and connections to businesses
owned by the Chinese government. These concerns have amplified
by recent reports of CCP activity in operations, like Salt
Typhoon, which my agency was directly affected. Regardless of
property ownership, it is my belief that the CCP maintains
access to these sites, particularly through its known practices
of controlling expatriates via so-called police stations.
Thank you for your time and attention to this critical
issue. I'm available to answer any questions you may have or to
provide additional information as needed.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Anderson follows:]
Prepared Statement of Donnie Anderson
September 18, 2025
Thank you Mr. Chairman, Ranking Members, and Members of the
committee for inviting me to participate in today's hearing and your
interest in Chinese-owned marijuana farms. This topic is of not only a
public safety interest, but also the interest of America's national
security. My name is Donnie Anderson, and I am the director of the
Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN). I have dedicated over 34 years to
public safety and narcotics enforcement, and I can say without
hesitation that the impact of black-market marijuana in Oklahoma is
unlike anything I have encountered in my career. What is even more
alarming is the growing influence and involvement of the Chinese
Communist Party (CCP) in this illicit industry.
Please understand that what I share today represents only a
fraction of the broader threat we face. Several investigations remain
open, and I am unable to comment on them further without jeopardizing
their integrity, endangering the brave men and women working these
cases, or violating laws that prohibit disclosure of active
investigations.
In 2018, Oklahoma voters approved medical marijuana State Question
788 drafted by marijuana advocates. Unfortunately, the law imposed no
limits on the number of grow operations or the quantity of plants each
could cultivate. This lack of regulation has led to a staggering
oversupply.
Between 2024 and 2025, licensed grow sites reported 87,210,960
plants. Yet dispensaries sold only 1,689,601 pounds of marijuana. Given
that one plant typically yields 1 pound of processed marijuana, over 85
million plants are unaccounted for--representing an estimated $153
billion in missing product and proceeds.
To put this in perspective, as of September 9, 2025, Oklahoma has
324,850 licensed medical marijuana patients. The scale of unreported
inventory is deeply troubling, especially considering that black-market
producers routinely underreport their plant counts.
Oklahoma's medical marijuana framework has inadvertently opened the
door to international organized crime. Criminal actors exploit the
system to produce high-potency marijuana for black-market dtstribution,
fueling what is now estimated to be a $153 billion illicit industry.
Of particular concern is the high prevalence of Chinese nationals
involved in these operations. Their presence has had a profound effect
on both our State and national security. Consider the following
examples:
2022.--Four Chinese nationals were executed at an illegal
marijuana farm near Hennessey, OK. A fifth individual was
seriously injured. The operation used a fraudulent license
obtained via a straw owner.
April 2024.--Law enforcement arrested multiple suspects in
connection with a robbery and homicide at a grow site in
Okfuskee County. The victim, 53-year-old Harry Dam, was fatally
shot.
July 2025.--A Canadian national was found murdered
execution-style at a grow operation near Lake Thunderbird. The
death is believed to be the result of a targeted robbery. The
investigation remains ongoing.
These incidents are just a few among many. Beyond these murders,
State authorities have documented a sharp rise in violent crime linked
to black-market marijuana operations masquerading as legal enterprises.
The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN) reports associated crimes
including:
Human and sex trafficking
Money laundering
Illegal gambling
Extortion
Theft of water and electricity.
Our agency currently employs one Mandarin-speaking agent. However,
this is insufficient when suspects communicate in Cantonese or
Fujianese--languages that Mandarin speakers cannot reliably translate.
Compounding this issue is the widespread use of WeChat, a Chinese-owned
platform used for both communication and financial transactions.
Because WeChat is based in mainland China and encrypted, U.S. law
enforcement cannot serve legal process or conduct electronic
surveillance as we would with domestic platforms. These apps fall
outside the scope of the Communications Act of 1996 and the Electronic
Communications Privacy Act of 1986, making them a major obstacle in our
investigations.
Oklahoma law requires marijuana business owners to be State
residents with at least 2 years of residency. Yet nearly all Chinese-
operated grows circumvent this requirement through fraud and straw
ownership. In one instance, a single Oklahoman was listed as the owner
of approximately 300 farms.
This wide-spread fraud is facilitated by consulting firms, real
estate agents, and attorneys who help establish these shell operations.
Alarmingly, many of these grows are located near critical
infrastructure, including military bases and pipelines.
For example, in an on-going investigation, the Department of
Defense has reported suspicious activity at a marijuana grow operated
by an ethnic Chinese group located adjacent to the McAlester ammunition
plant. This ammunition plant is the largest in the United States that
is also responsible for manufacturing the MOAB (Massive Ordinance Air
Blast) bomb, and houses close to one-third of the Department of
Defense's munitions stockpile.
There is no doubt that the Chinese government has shown interest in
Oklahoma's marijuana industry. We have documented financial transfers
to the Bank of China and connections to businesses owned by the Chinese
government.
These concerns are amplified by recent reports of CCP activity in
operations like Salt Typhoon. Regardless of property ownership, it is
my belief that the CCP maintains access to these sites, particularly
through its known practice of controlling expatriates via so-called
``police stations.''
Thank you for your time and attention to this critical issue. I am
available to answer any questions you may have or to provide additional
information as needed.
Chairman Brecheen. Thank you, Mr. Anderson.
I now recognize Director Larkin for 5 minutes for his
opening statement.
STATEMENT OF PAUL J. LARKIN, JOHN, BARBARA, AND VICTORIA RUMPEL
SENIOR LEGAL RESEARCH FELLOW, EDWIN MEESE III CENTER FOR LEGAL
AND JUDICIAL STUDIES, THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION
Mr. Larkin. For 60 years, one of the primary arguments made
in favor of the legalization of cannabis is that it will
eliminate the black market. The rationale given was that people
would prefer to avoid criminal prosecution for using cannabis
and they would like to purchase it from a store with a quality
reputation and a quality product. Over the last 5 to 10 years.
We now know that that argument is a fugazi. The black market
has not disappeared even though a majority of States in the
United States now have approved either medical or recreational
use marijuana programs. In fact, the problem that you have
taken up is a matter not just of public health, which is the
way cannabis issues are normally thought of. It's a matter of
domestic or homeland and national security.
Why? The businesses that we see across the Nation selling
cannabis for medical or recreational purposes are not run by
1950's-era beatniks or 1960's-era hippies. They are run by
Chinese organized crime with a tacit knowledge and acquiescence
by the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist
Party, two entities that are sworn enemies of the United
States. That raises a clear homeland and national security
aspect of this problem that has been under-discussed in all the
debates over cannabis legalization.
This is a serious problem. According to the Whitney
Economics Organization, the cannabis market is a $100 billion
industry, 75 percent of it is the illegal market and two-thirds
of the cannabis sold in the United States is grown
domestically. So we're talking not just about somebody who is
growing 5 plants in a home in connection and as authorized by a
State law. We're talking about people growing massive
quantities who are part of an organization that has nothing but
the worst interests of people in our neighborhoods in mind.
I mean, the existence of this black market is recognized by
numerous parties. Senator Joni Ernst and 49 other Members of
Congress sent a letter to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland
asking him to look into this. There have been numerous other
organizations and think tanks that have written about it. There
are beaucoup media stories, written, print, or in the TV media
on this. They all agree that this is a serious problem because
it is not simply the illegal distribution of controlled
substances that is at issue. It is all of the associated crimes
that occur. As the Ranking Member pointed out, we will see
money laundering, human trafficking, prostitution, fraud, and
various types of violent crimes, including homicides, as my
colleague has pointed out. All of these damage our local
communities.
But it's not just that. The money that Chinese organized
crime made from illegal fentanyl sales has helped underwrite
their cannabis business in the United States. The money that
they make in the current operations can be used to spread those
operations into other States and other areas as well as for
other purposes that do not have the best interests of the
United States in mind. Now, if this were just simply a small-
scale matter rather than a coast-to-coast matter, it might not
merit the attention of anything other than the legislatures,
the Executive branch, and law enforcement in those States and
neighborhoods. But it is, in fact, from coast to coast, from
Maine to California. Oklahoma, which is probably halfway
between, has seen a very serious problem as for the reasons my
colleague gave because there is unlimited grows allowed in that
State.
Now, as I mentioned before, this is not simply a problem of
domestic people that have broke bad. The Chinese organized
crime elements are working with the tacit knowledge and
acquiescence of the PRC and CCP. Now, that does--the law does
not require a formal agreement amongst those parties in order
for them to be held criminally liable. As I have explained in
some of my writings, the conspiracy laws allow someone to put
together a case based on various types of circumstantial
evidence of which there is an ample amount here.
What we have is a national problem involving a drug that,
unfortunately, is seen as being milder in some ways than others
and, pharmacologically, in many respects it is. But cannabis is
very harmful if you use it on a long-term basis or in very
serious doses. I am glad that you're holding this hearing and
I'm glad to answer your questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Larkin follows:]
Prepared Statement of Paul J. Larkin
September 18, 2025
Thank you for the opportunity to submit a written statement and
testify at this hearing.\1\ As the Rumpel Senior Legal Fellow at The
Heritage Foundation, much of my recent scholarship has focused on drug
policy and the involvement of foreign countries, including China, in
the illicit drug trade.\2\ I will draw from them here.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The Heritage Foundation is a public policy, research, and
educational organization recognized as exempt under section 501(c)(3)
of the Internal Revenue Code. It is privately supported and receives no
funds from any government at any level, nor does it perform any
government or other contract work. The Heritage Foundation is the most
broadly supported think tank in the United States. During 2024, it had
hundreds of thousands of individual, foundation, and corporate
supporters representing every State in the U.S. Its 2024 operating
income came from the following sources: Individuals 81 percent;
Foundations 14 percent; Corporations 2 percent; Program revenue and
other income 3 percent. The top five corporate givers provided The
Heritage Foundation with 1 percent of its 2024 income. The Heritage
Foundation's books are audited annually by the national accounting firm
of RSM US, LLP. Members of The Heritage Foundation staff testify as
individuals discussing their own independent research. The views
expressed are their own and do not reflect an institutional position of
The Heritage Foundation or its board of trustees.
\2\ For the subcommittee's convenience, I have attached as
appendices two relevant Heritage Foundation publications of mine: (1)
Paul J. Larkin, China and Cannabis, HERITAGE FOUND., Legal Memorandum
No. 380 (2025) [hereafter Larkin, China and Cannabis], and (2) Paul J.
Larkin, Twenty-First Century Illicit Drugs and Their Discontents: The
Failure of Cannabis Legalization to Eliminate an Illicit Market,
HERITAGE FOUND. Legal Memorandum No. 326 (2023).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
introduction
Most debates over the rescheduling, decriminalization, or
legalization of cannabis, known in the lingo as ``marijuana,'' focus on
the public health question of whether it is a relatively harmless
intoxicant or a medically hazardous drug.\3\ This hearing, by contrast
addresses a homeland security aspect of the controversy over cannabis:
namely, the problem of control by Chinese organized crime elements (or
Triads) of the unlawful medical and recreational cannabis markets in
the United States.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ I have written on that subject. See, e.g., Bertha K. Madras &
Paul J. Larkin, Rescheduling Cannabis--Medicine or Politics?, 82 JAMA
PSYCHIATRY 934 (2025); Paul J. Larkin, Driving While Stoned in
Virginia, 59 AM. CRIM. L. REV. ONLINE 1 (2022); Paul J. Larkin,
Reconsidering Federal Marijuana Regulation, 18 OHIO ST. J. CRIM. L. 99
(2020).
\4\ Unless the context dictates otherwise, references to ``China,''
``Chinese,'' the ``People's Republic of China (PRC),'' or the ``Chinese
Communist Party (CCP)'' should be read as referring to Chinese
organized crime elements. That is an important subject worth serious
consideration.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
It would be troublesome if any foreign nation gained a dominant
position in any criminal market in the United States. But the subject
of this hearing concerns a far, far more severe problem. The People's
Republic of China (PRC) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) are
committed enemies of the United States.\5\ They seek to displace the
United States as the world's dominant military and economic power by no
later than 2049, the centennial anniversary of the founding of the PRC.
For that reason, it is a matter of paramount and urgent concern for the
Nation's security that Chinese organized crime elements have
infiltrated the American States that have legalized cannabis for
medical or recreational purposes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ ``The Chinese government has made no secret of its ambition to
surpass the West both militarily and economically by the regime's 100th
anniversary in 2049 in the hope that the 21st Century will be dominated
by China in the same way that the 20th Century was dominated by the
United States. According to a popular saying in Chinese mythology,
`there is only one sun in the sky.' . . . What is worrisome is how
China achieves and maintains that wealth and power within the
increasingly interdependent global environment and its effects on the
security and well-being of the Western democracies.'' JOHN A. CASSARA,
MONEY LAUNDERING AND ILLICIT FINANCIAL FLOWS: FOLLOWING THE MONEY AND
VALUE TRAILS 193 (2020) (footnote omitted); see also, e.g., Tom Porter,
China Waging New Cold War to Topple U.S. as World's Leading Superpower,
Says CIA Official, NEWSWEEK, July 22, 2018; https://www.newsweek.com/
china-waging-new-cold-war-topple-us-worlds-leading-superpower-says-cia-
1036226 (``Michael Collins, the deputy assistant director of the CIA's
East Asia Mission Center stated in 2018 that Beijing's tactics to
achieve its ambitions fit the definition of a cold war: `I would argue
by definition what they're waging against us is fundamentally a cold
war . . . A country that exploits all avenues of power licit and
illicit, public and private, economic and military, to undermine the
standing of your rival relative to your own standing without resorting
to conflict.' ''); Larkin, China and Cannabis, supra note 2, at 10 n.2
(collecting authorities).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
i. chinese organized crime's involvement in the u.s. domestic cannabis
industry
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),
``Chinese and other Asian [Transnational Criminal Organizations, or
TCOs] have taken control of the marijuana trade'' in the United
States.\6\ Over 10 years, ``Chinese TCOs have come to dominate the
cultivation and distribution of marijuana across the United States,'' a
development seen from California to Oklahoma to Maine.\7\ Most of the
Chinese TCOs' cannabis cultivation occurs in States that have legalized
cannabis production under State law, although the TCOs often relocate
to other States once they are discovered.\8\ According to a recent
report by the Federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas entitled
Chinese Nationals and Marijuana in the United States, ``[a]n
unprecedented expansion of Chinese-operated marijuana farms has been
tracked across the United States, with operations from California to
Maine,'' meaning that ``Chinese marijuana operations now dominate the
U.S. illegal drug market at levels never seen before.''\9\ Various
other parties--including Federal, State, and local law enforcement
officers, Members of Congress, and investigative journalists--have
reached the same conclusion.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ DRUG ENF'T ADMIN, U.S. DEP'T OF JUST., 2025 National Drug
Threat Assessment, DEA-DCT-DIR-007-25, at 51 (May 2025) [hereafter 2025
DEA Threat Assessment].
\7\ 2025 DEA Threat Assessment, supra note 6, at 49; id.: The
purchase of real estate for both indoor and outdoor grows, and for the
storage of needed equipment, is often initially funded through family
and community connections, both in China and in the United States, as
many seek to skirt restrictions on the movement of currency from
Chinese banks to foreign countries. Undocumented Chinese immigrants,
many of whom spent years in Mexico and were lured to the United States
with offers of legal employment, staff many of the grow sites alongside
undocumented Mexican immigrants in similar circumstances. The
undocumented migrants are closely monitored by the Chinese TCO members
who own and manage the grows. Most of the grow sites are located in
States where the cannabis industry is ``legal,'' though most do not
follow the established licensure process or have obtained their
licenses through falsified means. They face little prison time, if any,
when caught, and often move to a new location in the same State or to
another ``legal'' State once discovered. The Chinese TCOs are producing
the most potent form of marijuana in the history of drug trafficking,
with a THC content averaging 25 to 30 percent, compared to a national
average of 16 percent. The grow sites use pesticides and fertilizers
shipped from China, including many chemicals banned in the United
States for decades because of adverse health and environmental
consequences. Not only are these chemicals entering the water, soil,
and air around the grow sites, some quantity of these chemicals also
remains on the processed marijuana that is ingested by users.
Oklahoma seems to have been targeted because there is no effective
limit on the amount of cannabis that can be grown. See NAT'L STRATEGIC
ANALYSIS INITIATIVE, HIGH INTENSITY DRUG TRAFFICKING AREAS, Briefing
Report--Chinese Nationals and Marijuana in the United States 2-3 (2025)
[hereafter HIDTA Report on China and Cannabis] (``Oklahoma became a
hotspot for Chinese marijuana operations after voters said `yes' to
medicinal marijuana in 2018. The State stood out because it did not
limit the number of dispensaries or growing operations . . . In
Oklahoma, the lack of regulations to limit the number of dispensaries
or grow operations created opportunistic conditions for illegal
activities. State investigators found connections between foreign
criminal networks and over 3,000 illegal grows--more than 80 percent of
these were Chinese-run. The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN) shut
down more than 800 farms in 2 years. About 75 percent of these had
links to Chinese investors and organized crime.'') (footnotes omitted);
Terry Gross, How the Chinese Mafia Came to Control Much of the Illicit
Marijuana Trade in the U.S., NPR, Mar. 21, 2024, https://www.npr.org/
2024/03/21/1239854106/how-the-chinese-mafia-came-to-control-much-of-
the-illicit-marijuana-trade-in-the (last accessed Aug. 1, 2025) (``You
have remarkable scenes of private planes flying from rural airstrips in
California to Oklahoma with couriers carrying suitcases full of cash to
go out and buy farms in Oklahoma, where land is cheap, and setting up
new operations in the new hotspot where they can make even more money
because there's really no limits on how big these farms are and how
much marijuana they can grow . . . GROSS: . . . [W]hy Oklahoma? You
mentioned that land is cheap there. Is that the main reason why
Oklahoma has become such a big State for the illicit growth of
marijuana? [ ] ROTELLA: It's partly because the land is cheap. It's
also because that medical marijuana law they passed made it
particularly easy just to move in, set up and grow. In other States,
there are limits on how much you can grow. In Oklahoma, there are
basically no limits. So you have these huge operations and thousands of
farms growing marijuana and, you know, law enforcement kind of
overwhelmed and trying to keep up with it and prevent what is kind of
wholesale trafficking to other States.''); id. (``ROTELLA: What has
happened is there have just been a great deal of--an overwhelming
number of farms--at one point, there were 10,000 growing operations in
Oklahoma--and systematic abuse and violation of those laws,
particularly criminal groups paying, illegally, Oklahoma residents to
be straw owners and farms that are producing far more marijuana than
could be consumed in Oklahoma for medical purposes. And most of that
marijuana is going around the country, particularly the East Coast, to
be sold illegally. [ ] GROSS: So organized crime gets people to front
for them and get a license, and then organized crime can move in and
grow. And it looks legal. [ ] ROTELLA: And it has the facade of
legality. And what's happening is then taking advantage of the fact
that you can get a lot more money, say, if you're selling the dope in
New York or on the East Coast. There's smuggling of, you know, truck-
loads of marijuana and huge profits--you know, billions of dollars
being made in this marijuana that's grown in Oklahoma and being
trafficked and sold elsewhere.'').
\8\ See Gross, supra note 7 (``When States started legalizing
marijuana, one of the hopes was that it would cut down on crime because
people could buy it legally from licensed sellers. But in some States,
including Oklahoma, legalization inadvertently helped organized crime,
especially the Chinese mafia, exploit new opportunities. Chinese
organized crime has come to dominate much of the illicit marijuana
trade in the Nation, from California to Maine[.]'').
\9\ HIDTA Report on China and Cannabis, supra note 7, at 2; see
also id. at 1 (``Oklahoma's illegal marijuana production alone ranges
between $18 billion and $44 billion each year . . . Chinese marijuana
operations have spread across America in a clear pattern. They started
in California over a decade ago and have now expanded to States that
have favorable growing conditions with less oversight. Oklahoma became
a hotspot for Chinese marijuana operations after voters said `yes' to
medicinal marijuana in 2018. The State stood out because it did not
limit the number of dispensaries or growing operations.''); id.
(``Oklahoma saw its licensed marijuana grows reach almost 10,000 by
late 2021, which provided perfect cover for illegal operations.'')
(footnote omitted);.''); id. at 2 (``State investigators found
connections between foreign criminal networks and over 3,000 illegal
grows--more than 80 percent of these were Chinese-run. The Oklahoma
Bureau of Narcotics (OBN) shut down more than 800 farms in 2 years.
About 75 percent of these had links to Chinese investors and organized
crime.'') (footnotes omitted).
\10\ See, e.g., U.S. DEP'T OF JUST., Press Release, Seven Chinese
Nationals Charged for Alleged Roles in Multi-Million-Dollar Money
Laundering, Alien Smuggling and Drug Trafficking Enterprise, July 8,
2025 [hereafter DOJ, Seven Chinese Nationals Charged], https://
www.justice.gov/usao-ma/pr/seven-chinese-nationals-charged-alleged-
roles-multi-million-dollar-money-laundering (``Seven Chinese nationals
were charged today in connection with a multi-million-dollar conspiracy
to cultivate and distribute marijuana across the Northeast that used
interconnected grow houses concealed inside single-family properties in
Massachusetts and Maine. It is alleged that Chinese nationals were
smuggled into the United States to work in these grow houses without
access to their passports until they repaid their smuggling debts . . .
Data extracted from Chen's [Jianxiong Chen, the accused ringleader of
this organization] cell phone allegedly revealed that he helped smuggle
Chinese nationals into the United States--putting the aliens to work at
one of the grow houses he controlled while keeping possession of their
passports until they repaid him for the cost associated with smuggling
them into the country.''); Letter from U.S. Senator Jodi Ernst and 49
Other Members of Congress to U.S. Attorney Gen'l Merrick Garland
Regarding Chinese Nationals and Organized Crime Cultivation of Cannabis
in the United States 1 (Feb. 2, 2024) [hereafter Ernst Letter], https:/
/www.ernst.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/ernst_works_to_shut_down_ccp-
linked_marijuana_farms.pdf (last accessed Sept. 10, 2025) (``We are
deeply concerned with reports from across the country regarding Chinese
nationals and organized crime cultivating marijuana on United States
farmland. In some cases, the grow operators were also engaged in human
trafficking, forced labor, drug trafficking, and violent crime. These
farms are most commonly in States with legal marijuana programs where
illicit growers try to disguise their operations in communities where
law-abiding Americans live and work. The thousands of illicit Chinese
marijuana growing operations pose a direct threat to public safety,
human rights, national security, and the addiction crisis gripping our
Nation.'') (footnotes omitted); Emily Feng, Marijuana Farms Are
Increasingly Chinese-Run. Why?, NPR, Mar. 13, 2024, https://
www.npr.org/2024/03/23/1240510436/marijuana-farms-are-increasingly-
chinese-run-why (last accessed Aug. 1, 2025) (``37,000 Chinese people .
. . crossed into the country this way last year alone [i.e., 2023].
U.S. border authorities say this number is more than the past 10 years
combined.''); Natalie Fertig, The Growing Chinese Investment in Illegal
American Weed, POLITICO, Mar. 21, 2023, www.politico.com/news/2023/03/
21/illicit-cannabis-china-00086125 (last accessed Sept. 8, 2025) (``In
California, the Department of Cannabis Control says Chinese triads have
been nominally involved in illegal cannabis production for decades, but
that there's been a recent increase in the number of actors and money
that may have originated in China. The DCC also said that some--but not
all--of the Chinese-funded grows they've encountered are operated by
Chinese triads. `This notion that you now have Chinese actual funding
for illicit cannabis, it's definitely new, and it cuts directly across
the interests of Mexican drug trafficking groups,' said [Vanda] Felbab
Brown. `It's interesting to see whether it continues growing, [and] how
that's going to affect relations between the Mexicans and the Chinese
[criminal groups].' ''); id. (``A few days before Christmas, a joint
law enforcement task force found nearly 9,000 pounds of cannabis worth
almost $15 million during a raid in a suburban neighborhood in Antioch,
Calif. . . . The California Department of Cannabis Control believes
that the 4 houses searched in the bedroom community 45 minutes outside
San Francisco were linked to China.''); id. (``Law enforcement in
southern Oregon in 2021 reported as many as 20 different nationalities
linked to illegal grows. But the increasing amount of Chinese funding--
and what lawmakers and some experts say is the potential influence of
the Chinese Communist Party--has caught the attention of legislators
and law enforcement alike.''); Liyan Qi, How Chinese Marijuana
Operations Cropped Up in Small-Town America, WALL ST. J., Nov. 30,
2023, https://www.wsj.com/us-news/law/how-chinese-marijuana-operations-
cropped-up-in-small-town-america-45b7b598?-
mod=Searchresults_pos2&page=1 (last accessed Aug. 1, 2025) (``Following
the legalization of marijuana in many States, Chinese-run marijuana
farms have emerged across the U.S. Some are run by investor groups with
a commercial growing license. But just as illegal marijuana shops have
proliferated, so have unlicensed growing operations.''); id. (``In
California, Chinese networks have seized on the highly lucrative black
market in marijuana growing, said Lt. Raymond Framstad of the Merced
County Sheriff's Office, who has investigated more than 20 cases
involving unlicensed Chinese-run operations.''); Gross, supra note 7
(``Marijuana has been legalized in some States, but ProPublica's
Sebastian Rotella says there's still a thriving illicit market,
dominated by criminals connected to China's authoritarian
government.''); id. (``In California, Chinese networks have seized on
the highly lucrative black market in marijuana growing, said Lt.
Raymond Framstad of the Merced County Sheriff's Office, who has
investigated more than 20 cases involving unlicensed Chinese-run
operations.''); id. (``Many Chinese networks have enough equipment for
several large residential operations . . . They find the house that
they want, equip it to grow marijuana a year or longer before the
police crackdown, then fix the property up and sell it at a profit . .
. A residential black-market growing operation can be set up for as
many as six harvests a year, bringing in an annual profit of several
million dollars depending on the size, said [Lieutenant] Framstad, who
oversees the marijuana enforcement team at the sheriff's office.'');
Sebastian Rotella et al., A Diplomat's Visits to Oklahoma Highlight
Contacts Between Chinese Officials and Community Leaders Accused of
Crimes, PROPUBLICA, Mar. 22, 2024, www.propublica.org/article/oklahoma-
marijuana-china-diplomat-visits (last accessed Sept. 120,[sic] 2025)
(`` `These diaspora associations are tools of the Chinese state,' said
Donald Im, a former senior official at the Drug Enforcement
Administration. `The presence of criminal elements in the leadership
suggests an alliance, directly or indirectly, between the Chinese state
and organized crime.' '').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese organized crime has been able to move into the American
cannabis industry because--contrary to what cannabis reform advocates
have told us for the last 60-plus years--the legalization of cannabis
has not eliminated a black (or grey) market for that plant.\11\ Since
the 1960's, cannabis reform proponents have argued that a black market
will always exist to meet the consumer demand for illegal cannabis, so
the best way to eliminate that market is to legalize and regulate its
cultivation, distribution, and sale. The availability of legally sold
cannabis, we were told, would eliminate the black market for two
reasons. The average person wants both to avoid arrest, prosecution,
and imprisonment for purchasing cannabis and also prefers doing so from
an above-board store with a reputation for selling a safe, reliable,
and uniform product instead of buying a potentially dangerous substance
with an unknown effect. Accordingly, the argument concluded, the
illicit cannabis market would disappear through the ordinary work of
basic economics and consumer choice in a legitimate market.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\11\ In a ``black market,'' any sale of cannabis is illegal. A
``grey market'' is one where cannabis may be sold but is regulated and
taxed, and sales occur outside the regulatory and tax regime.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
That is not what happened. As I explained in my article China and
Cannabis:
``History has proved the reformers wrong; illicit markets are still
with us today, nearly 30 years after California rolled the first
cannabis snowball downhill. According to estimates made by Whitney
Economics, which analyzes the cannabis industry, the illegal markets
constitute approximately 75 percent of the $100 billion industry, and
two-thirds of the cannabis sold in these markets is grown domestically.
Even the Supreme Court of the United States has acknowledged that
`there is an established, albeit illegal, interstate market' for
cannabis in the United States. Parties who grow and sell cannabis
without a license have continued to prosper in States where it may be
lawfully distributed under State law. The illicit industry in some
States--California, where the contemporary cannabis revolution began,
is a prime example--is larger than the lawful one that was supposed to
drive the former out of business.
``The reason for the black market's survival is Economics 101 `with a
dose of convenience thrown in.' Unlicensed growers do not pay the taxes
that licensed businesses pay, nor do they comply with the environmental
and labor regulations that increase the operating costs for regulated
firms. The result is that they can sell cannabis at a lower price than
State-licensed stores can charge. Additionally, some people will fear
being `outed' as users because it could cost them their jobs or damage
their reputation, so they will continue to purchase cannabis on the
sly. Cannabis grown for medical or personal uses, which are not subject
to any business taxes and regulations, can be sold locally in
competition with retail stores. Finally, cannabis has been grown
illegally in Federal and State parks, which adds to the amount
available for sale to the public. Illicit sales have become a fixture
of the cannabis market, and there is no evidence that cannabis's
thriving black market will disappear, whether soon or ever.''\12\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ Larkin, China and Cannabis, supra note 2, at 3 (footnotes
omitted).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ii. the potential symbiotic relationship between chinese organized
crime and the government of the people's republic of china and the
chinese communist party
There is reason to believe that Chinese Organized Crime is acting
with the knowledge of, and tacit acceptance by, the government of the
People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Chinese Community Party (CCP).
U.S. Senator Joni Ernst and 49 other Members of Congress made that
point in a February 2, 2024, letter to then-U.S. Attorney General
Merrick Garland.\13\ According to a 2024 report by ProPublica, ``U.S.
and foreign national security officials have alleged that the Chinese
state maintains a tacit alliance with Chinese organized crime in the
U.S. and across the world.''\14\ Brookings Institution drug policy
expert Vanda Felbab-Brown concluded that ``[t]he Chinese government has
a complicated relationship with organized crime.''\15\ The PRC
ostensibly condemns the Triads, but seems to acquiesce in their global
fentanyl and methamphetamine drug trafficking networks. In addition,
Chinese mobsters ``overtly support pro-Beijing causes and covertly
provide services overseas,'' ProPublica noted, ``engaging in political
influence work, moving illicit funds offshore for the Chinese elite and
helping persecute dissidents, according to Western officials, court
cases and human rights groups,'' and even provide ``extra-legal''
muscle for the PRC ``to curry favor with the CCP.''\16\ Finally, there
is evidence that a Chinese diplomat met with members of a suspected
Chinese criminal network in Oklahoma.\17\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\13\ Ernst Letter, supra note 10, at 1 (``Chinese nationals--
including those with potential ties to the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP)--are reportedly operating thousands of illicit marijuana farms
across the country . . . Experts believe there is substantial evidence
implicating the CCP in directly supporting illicit marijuana grow
operations across the United States.'') (footnotes omitted).
\14\ Rotella et al., supra note 10 (referencing U.S. Senate Comm.
on Armed Services Hearing on U.S. Southern & Northern Commands (Mar.
16, 2021) (testimony of Admiral Craig Faller, Commander, U.S. Southern
Command) [hereafter Admiral Faller testimony], https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=0lu5Bdxr8QI&t=4765s (last accessed Sept. 10, 2025).
\15\ Fertig, supra note 10.
\16\ Id.
\17\ Rotella et al., supra note 10 (``The photos look like a
routine encounter between a senior Chinese diplomat and immigrants in
the American heartland: dutiful smiles, casual clothes, a teapot on a
table, Chinese and U.S. flags on the wall. [ ] But behind the images,
there is a potentially concerning story. During two trips to Oklahoma,
Consul General Zhu Di of the Chinese embassy visited a cultural
association that has been a target of investigations into Chinese
mafias that dominate the State's billion-dollar marijuana industry. And
the community leaders posing with him in the photos? A number of them
have pleaded guilty or been prosecuted or investigated for drug-related
crimes, according to court documents, public records, photos and social
media posts. [ ] `He's meeting with known criminals, said Donnie
Anderson, the director of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs Control, in an interview.''); id. (``After a mass
murder at a marijuana farm, a Chinese diplomat visited an organization
that has been the subject of investigations. The meetings reflect an
international pattern of contacts between Chinese officials and
suspected criminal networks. [ ] . . . During two trips to Oklahoma,
Consul General Zhu Di of the Chinese embassy visited a cultural
association that has been a target of investigations into Chinese
mafias that dominate the State's billion-dollar marijuana industry. And
the community leaders posing with him in the photos? A number of them
have pleaded guilty or been prosecuted or investigated for drug-related
crimes, according to court documents, public records, photos and social
media posts. [ ] `He's meeting with known criminals,' said Donnie
Anderson, the director of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs Control, in an interview. [ ] There is no indication of
wrongdoing by the consul general, who is one of China's top diplomats
in the United States. Still, the encounters in Oklahoma reflect a
pattern of contacts around the world between China's authoritarian
government and diaspora leaders linked to criminal activity--a subject
of increasing concern among Western national security officials, human
rights groups and Chinese dissidents.'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
It is important to realize that the PRC and CCP cannot escape
responsibility for the actions of Chinese organized crime by arguing
that there is no express agreement between the former two entities and
the latter. In a criminal prosecution, the jury may ``rely on
inferences drawn from the course of conduct of the alleged
conspirators.''\18\ As the Supreme Court of the United States has made
clear, ``[t]he doctrine of willful blindness is well established in
criminal law.''\19\ as is the principle that the government may
establish proof of a conspiracy entirely through circumstantial
evidence,\20\ which appears to be in ample supply on this point.\21\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\18\ Ianelli v. United States, 420 U.S. 770, 777 (1975). See
generally Paul J. Larkin, The Criminal Responsibility of Parties Who
Traffic in Fentanyl Precursor Chemicals, HERITAGE FOUND. Special Report
No. 320, at 5 & 26 nn.55-60 (2025).
\19\ Global-Tech Appliances, Inc. v. SEB S.A., 563 U.S. 754, 766
(2011).
\20\ See Holland v. United States, 348 U.S. 121, 140 (1954)
(``Circumstantial evidence in this respect is intrinsically no
different from testimonial evidence. Admittedly, circumstantial
evidence may in some cases point to a wholly incorrect result. Yet this
is equally true of testimonial evidence. In both instances, a jury is
asked to weigh the chances that the evidence correctly points to guilt
as against the possibility of inaccuracy or ambiguous inference. In
both, the jury must use its experience with people and events in
weighing the probabilities. If the jury is convinced beyond a
reasonable doubt, we can require no more.'').
\21\ For example, evidence that the PRC government is aware of and
might be complicit in money laundering was found on encrypted cell
phones seized in a DEA investigation. See Sebastian Rotella & Kirsten
Berg, How a Chinese American Gangster Transformed Money Laundering for
Drug Cartels, PROPUBLICA, Oct. 11, 2022, https://www.propublica.org/
article/china-cartels-xizhi-li-money-laundering (last accessed Aug. 3,
2025) (`` `There is no question there is interconnectivity between
Chinese organized crime and the Chinese state, said [former senior FBI
Official Frank] Montoya[, Jr.]. `The party operates in organized crime-
type fashion. There are parallels to Russia, where organized crime has
been co-opted by the Russian government and Putin's security services.'
''); id. (``Looking at Chen's smartphones, the agents were able for the
first time to read the suspects' most sensitive conversations on
WeChat, an application for messaging and commerce. WeChat is ubiquitous
in China and the Chinese diaspora and impenetrable to U.S. law
enforcement. Because it uses a form of partial encryption allowing the
company access to content, WeChat is closely monitored by the Chinese
state, according to U.S. national security veterans. [ ] U.S. officials
view the brazen use of WeChat for money laundering as another
suggestive piece of evidence that authorities in Beijing know what is
going on. [ ] `It is all happening on WeChat,' Cindric said. `The
Chinese government is clearly aware of it. The launderers are not
concealing themselves on WeChat.' '').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
iii. steps that the federal government may take to arrest and claw back
the infiltration of chinese organized crime in the state-legal cannabis
industry
A. Actions that the States and Federal Executive Branch Can Take
Without the Need for New Substantive Federal Legislation
There are various steps that the States and the Executive Branch
can take to address this problem.\22\ For example, if a State has not
yet adopted a medical- or recreational use cannabis regime, the State
should not do so. In addition, States can take various actions to
protect the Nation against the PRC's interest in acquiring real estate
for spying or illegal drug activity, such as requiring real estate
purchasers and lessees to identify all foreign individuals and foreign-
owned or foreign-controlled companies with a legal or financial
interest in their purchases or rentals. That would help to prevent the
PRC from using third parties or sham corporations to obtain property
for use as an indoor cultivation or production site for cannabis.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\22\ See Larkin, China and Cannabis, supra note 2, at 6-7.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The U.S. Department of Justice also should undertake aggressive
criminal investigations into, and prosecution of, the actions of
Chinese organized crime elements for violations of one or more of
several Federal criminal laws. The most obvious place to start is with
the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Cannabis is a Schedule I drug,
the category for drugs that lack a current medical use, have a high
potential for abuse, and are dangerous even when used under a
physician's supervision.\23\ The cultivation and distribution of
cannabis is a felony under Federal law punishable by a lengthy term of
imprisonment \24\ that depends on the weight of a ``mixture or
substance'' containing a detectable amount of delta-9-
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).\25\ The Department charged the parties in
Maine and Massachusetts cases noted above with such drug offenses, for
example.\26\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\23\ 21 U.S.C. 801, 802, 841(6), (10)-(12), (15)-(16), (22),
812(a), (b) & Schedule I (West 2025).
\24\ A term that can include life imprisonment without the
possibility of parole if an offender is convicted for violating the
Continuing Criminal Enterprise Act, 21 U.S.C. 848 (West 2025).
\25\ 21 U.S.C. 841; see Chapman v. United States, 500 U.S. 453,
456-64 (1991).
\26\ DOJ, Seven Chinese Nationals Charged, supra note 10.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
But that is not all. From media reports and elsewhere, there
appears to be evidence worth pursuing regarding the commission of other
Federal crimes that are ancillary to Chinese organized crime's cannabis
trafficking.\27\ Those offenses might include money laundering,
involuntary servitude, human trafficking, prostitution, fraud, and
other Federal offenses, such as violent crimes.\28\ Those offenses
might already be under investigation by the Federal Government. If not,
they should be.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\27\ HIDTA Report on China and Cannabis, supra note 7, at 4 (``One
tactic discovered to be utilized by a New Mexico-based criminal
organization was to target Chinese immigrants who lost work during the
COVID-19 pandemic. Their sophisticated recruitment strategy included:
Social media advertisements promising $200 daily wages; False job
descriptions of legitimate agricultural work, i.e. `gardening' and
`flower cutting'; Guaranteed housing and meals[.] . . . The reality
these workers face stands in stark contrast to the promises made. It
was documented in New Mexico that workers were being forced to endure
14-hour workdays, while living in deplorable conditions. In another
operation in Oklahoma, 20-30 people were found crammed into a single
room with just one bathroom and no air conditioning. Workers often
sleep in various makeshift accommodations: Wooden sheds with dirt
floors; Trailers without basic utilities; Greenhouse floors; Fields and
ditches, exposed to the elements[.]'') (punctuation omitted); id. at 5
(``The New Mexico and Oklahoma investigations have revealed severe
human rights violations, and the similarities between the operations
have identified a suspected pattern of activity. Upon arrival, workers
often have their phones and car keys confiscated. Cases have been
documented where armed guards with guns and machetes patrol the
premises, and workers face constant surveillance through cameras and
security personnel. The exploitation extends beyond confinement.
Workers report receiving no payment for their labor, with some owed up
to $12,000 in promised wages. Numerous cases were encountered where
workers were exposed to dangerous chemicals, resulting in visible burns
on their hands and arms. Many appeared malnourished and showed signs of
physical abuse. [ ] Perhaps most disturbing is the discovery of human
trafficking elements. Evidence has been found of workers being smuggled
directly to farms through Mexican border crossings, with farm owners
paying approximately $20,000 per worker to trafficking networks. These
workers are then forced to work for 2 years to pay off their ``debt.''
When workers attempt to demand their wages, they can face violent
retaliation. In one instance, a worker who requested payment found
himself being threatened by a guard armed with an AK-47 semi-automatic
rifle. The presence of drugs, cash, and weapons has created an
environment where violence is commonplace, and workers live in constant
fear of retaliation if they speak out or attempt to escape.'')
(footnotes omitted).
\28\ See, e.g., id. at 4 (``One tactic discovered to be utilized by
a New Mexico-based criminal organization was to target Chinese
immigrants who lost work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their
sophisticated recruitment strategy included: Social media
advertisements promising $200 daily; wages; False job descriptions of
legitimate agricultural work, i.e. `gardening' and `flower cutting';
Guaranteed housing and meals[.] . . . The reality these workers face
stands in stark contrast to the promises made. It was documented in New
Mexico that workers were being forced to endure 14-hour workdays, while
living in deplorable conditions. In another operation in Oklahoma, 20-
30 people were found crammed into a single room with just one bathroom
and no air conditioning. Workers often sleep in various makeshift
accommodations: Wooden sheds with dirt floors; Trailers without basic
utilities; Greenhouse floors; Fields and ditches, exposed to the
elements[.]'') (footnotes and punctuation omitted); Ernst Letter, supra
note 10 (``In some cases, the grow operators were also engaged in human
trafficking, forced labor, drug trafficking, and violent crime.'');
Admiral Faller Testimony, supra note 11, at 63 (``The money-laundering
connection is the most significant, where Chinese money laundering
underwrites TCOs [to] a significant proportion, and that is something
that we are tracking as part of all interagency effort here in the
United States.'') JOHN A. CASSARA, CHINA-SPECIFIED UNLAWFUL ACTIVITIES:
CCP INC., TRANSNATIONAL CRIME AND MONEY LAUNDERING 34 (2023)
(``According to the FBI, Chinese criminal enterprises conduct
traditional racketeering activities normally associated with organized
crime including extortion, murder, kidnapping, illegal gambling,
prostitution, and loansharking. They engage in human trafficking,
traffic heroin and methamphetamine, commit financial frauds, engage in
auto theft, deal in illicit tobacco products, trade in counterfeit
goods, and other criminal activities. They launder the proceeds of the
crime.''); id. (noting that a ``defining characteristic'' of Chinese
criminal enterprises is violence); Nolan Clay, He Ran a Brothel for
Oklahoma Marijuana Farms. Now He's Going to Prison, THE OKLAHOMAN, July
15, 2025, www.oklahoman.com/story/news/crime/2025/07/11/a-pimp-for-
oklahomas-medical-marijuana-farms-sentenced-to-prison/84620520007/
(``The boss of a brothel for Oklahoma's pot farms has been sentenced to
20 years in prison for sex trafficking.''); Feng, supra note 10 (``Last
summer, New Mexico State special agents inspecting a farm found
thousands more cannabis plants than State laws allow. Then on
subsequent visits, they made another unexpected discovery: dozens of
underfed, shell-shocked Chinese workers. The workers said they had been
trafficked to the farm in Torrance County, N.M., were prevented from
leaving and never got paid.''); Tom James, The Failed Promise of Legal
Pot, ATLANTIC, May 9, 2016, https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/
archive/2016/05/legal-pot-and-the-black-market/481506/ (quoting
Oklahoma Assistant Attorney General Emily Grossnicklaus: `These women
are treated as property rather than human beings.' ''); Qi, supra note
10 (``According to a social-media post by the Oklahoma Narcotics
Bureau, the State indicted two Chinese men on human-trafficking
charges, alleging that they operated an Oklahoma City brothel where
between late last year and early this year, approximately a dozen women
were trafficked. [ ] `Evidence from the investigation shows many of the
clients of the brothel were managers and administrators of commercial
marijuana farms,' the post said. The men couldn't be reached for
comment.''); Nicole Sganga et al., Black Market Marijuana Tied to
Chinese Criminal Networks Infiltrates Maine, CBS NEWS, Apr. 26, 2024,
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/black-market-marijuana-tied-to-chinese-
criminal-networks-infiltrates-maine/ (``Donovan told CBS News that some
of the people working in marijuana grow operations around the country
are Chinese nationals who are victims of labor trafficking. [ ]
`[They're] brought here under the auspices that they're working under a
legit business,' he said. `And they're often kept unwillingly in these
locations and told what to do to oversee the cultivation of these
marijuana plants.' '') (last accessed Aug. 1, 2025).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Actions that Congress Can Take
Congress should consider whether Federal legislation is necessary
to protect uniquely national interests. The Federal Government has a
surpassing interest in preventing any foreign power or nationals from
purchasing or renting property that enables it or them to spy on
sensitive Federal locations (such as military bases), to commit Federal
offenses, or to generate illegal funds that can be used to undermine
American interests in other ways. States cannot adopt domestic laws
that interfere with the Nation's foreign policy, which is a uniquely
Federal interest, as the Supreme Court recognized in Zschernig v.
Miller.\29\ As the Supreme Court explained in Haig v. Agee, ``[i]t is
`obvious and unarguable' that no governmental interest is more
compelling than the security of the Nation.'' Accordingly,
Congressional actions would be entirely appropriate.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\29\ 389 U.S. 429 (1968); see Larkin, China and Cannabis, supra
note 2, at 8 (discussing the Zschernig case).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Congress could establish a uniform property acquisition
rule across the States.
Zschernig makes it clear that the President and Congress have broad
power to define the Nation's foreign policy and protect its residents
against harms resulting from foreign powers. Cannabis use, particularly
by military age men and women, can weaken our national security by
reducing, perhaps greatly, the number of potential soldiers, sailors,
airmen, and Marines who are qualified and fit to serve. Congress
therefore could regulate the acquisition of property, whether by
purchase or leasehold, by anyone who is acting on behalf of, at the
instigation of, or for the benefit of a foreign party, particularly the
PRC or CCP. At a minimum, Congress could require that property owners
notify the U.S. Department of Homeland Security whenever a Chinese
national buys or leases real property.\30\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\30\ Other nations potentially subject to the same treatment would
be Iran, North Korea, and Russia.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Congress could expand the authority of the Committee on
Foreign Investment in the United States.
Established by President Gerald Ford pursuant to the Defense
Production Act (DPA) of 1950, the Committee on Foreign Investment in
the United States (CFIUS) is an interagency committee authorized to
review certain transactions involving domestic foreign investment,
including certain real estate transactions by foreign parties.\31\ The
committee has the authority to review such deals and advise the
President as to whether to prohibit the transaction or allow it to go
forward under whatever conditions he deems appropriate if he finds
``credible evidence'' that the transaction ``threatens to impair the
national security of the United States.''\32\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\31\ Larkin, China and Cannabis, supra note 2, at 9; see also Bryan
Burack, China's Land Grab: The Sale of U.S. Real Estate to Foreign
Adversaries Threatens National Security, HERITAGE FOUND. Backgrounder
No. 3825 (2024).
\32\ 50 U.S.C. ch. 55, 4501-4518.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nevertheless, the CFIUS screen is not impermeable. Not every type
of real estate transaction must be reported. CFIUS has decided that it
lacks jurisdiction over so-called greenfield or start-up investments,
and some parties have not made the necessary disclosures even for a
``covered transaction,'' which deprives CFIUS and the President of the
information needed to decide whether to allow a particular transaction
to go forward. Accordingly, Congress could revise the DPA to make it
clear that there is no greenfield exception to CFIUS's jurisdiction.
conclusion
The High Intensity Drug Task Forces recently concluded that the
problem discussed above ``represent[s] a critical national security
threat requiring coordinated Federal response, specialized
investigative units, and comprehensive legislative action to close
regulatory loopholes that enable these criminal enterprises to
operate.''\33\ There are steps that Congress can take to expose those
enterprises and their illegal activities. The Homeland Security
Committee and its Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and
Accountability has done the public a great service by exposing what is
happening today. With luck, Congress will move forward to stem these
problems.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\33\ HIDTA Report on China and Cannabis, supra note 7, at 9.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX
[The supplemental documents referred to may be found at https://
www.heritage.org/china/report/china-and-cannabis and https://
www.heritage.org/crime-and-justice/report/twenty-first-century-illicit-
drugs-and-their-discontents-the-failure.]
Chairman Brecheen. Thank you, Mr. Larkin.
Mr. Urben, you are now recognized for your 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF CHRISTOPHER URBEN, MANAGING DIRECTOR, NARDELLO &
CO.
Mr. Urben. Committee Chairman Garbarino, Committee Ranking
Member Thompson, Ranking Member Thanedar, and distinguished
Members of this subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity
today to address you on the growth of Chinese organized crime
in the United States and the role of marijuana cultivation and
distribution in facilitating that growth.
During my 24-year career with the DEA as an agent and
executive, I saw first-hand the damage done by transnational
criminal organizations, TCOs and the increasingly significant
operations of Chinese transnational criminal organizations.
Over the last 5 years of my career, I led a team at DEA's
Special Operations Division, SOD, dedicated to an operation
called Project Sleeping Giant, which sought to understand,
identify, target Chinese organized crime operating in the
United States and abroad. We were particularly concerned about
the rise of Chinese money-laundering networks which have
transformed narcotics trafficking by offering dramatically
lower rates, lower risk, and quicker return of funds than the
networks that had previously laundered those funds.
Project Sleeping Giant's objectives included understanding
the Chinese organized crime threat, developing intelligence on
it, and designing enforcement operations to mitigate it. As a
result of the investigative and intelligence-gathering
operation, we learned that Chinese organized crime was involved
in a wide range of criminal activity globally, including being
the Chinese suppliers of precursor chemicals used in fentanyl
production in Mexico, becoming the primary money launderers for
the Mexican cartels which have been recently designated as
FTOs, human trafficking networks, global operations that
corrupt government authorities, wildlife trafficking networks,
and, of course, Chinese-controlled marijuana cultivation within
the United States.
So what have the Chinese money launderers done with the
proceeds of their criminal activity? Starting in 2017, when a
wave of marijuana legalization was sweeping through the United
States, we started seeing the profits of the laundering of
Mexican cartel proceeds get invested into marijuana cultivation
and distribution operations by Chinese money launderers. The
speed and organization in which the Chinese-controlled
marijuana grows were established was nothing short of
remarkable.
As the Chinese money launderers provided the funding for
the grows, trafficked Chinese citizens into the United States
to live at the grow locations, tending to the plants on a 24/7
basis, they then trafficked the marijuana to cities for sale.
All of this happened seamlessly. It was extremely well-
organized because it was being managed by Chinese organized
crime and Chinese money launderers at the leadership and
command-and-control level.
What is the best way to combat the threat? First, there is
a critical need for local, State, and Federal officials to
recognize that activities, including Chinese marijuana grows
and distribution operations, are not just weed cases. They are
harmful in and of themselves and they also help fuel Chinese
money launderers and organize crime-linked activity, such as
human trafficking, fentanyl distribution, and other dangerous
harmful activities. These cases should be prioritized as they
are linked to the larger criminal networks.
State and local governments individually do not have the
necessary resources and authorities to attack and dismantle
Chinese marijuana trafficking networks. State and local
governments typically lack the subject-matter experts, language
skills, data scientists, confidential sources, and other law
enforcement capabilities that are needed to address the threat.
Federal funding, coordination, and authority, combined with
State and local resources, intelligence, and their authorities,
is desperately needed. It is essential to use the Federal
racketeering, money laundering, continuing criminal enterprise
prosecutions to target the leadership and command-and-control
levels of these operations, similar to what we did in the late
1980's and 1990's against Italian organized crime for organized
crime leaders.
Chinese organized crime leaders need to understand that the
Federal Government will aggressively target them with severe
consequences. Using other Federal authorities to target the
related crimes such as human trafficking, money laundering, tax
evasion, mortgage fraud, as well as State and local laws and
regulations governing the cultivation operations themselves and
those governing land, power use, and water violations will have
a material impact.
Last, even at the Federal level, specialized task forces
are needed to effectively target Chinese money launderers and
Chinese organized crime engaged in marijuana trafficking
activity. A fully-funded intergovernmental platform will allow
for law enforcement to better identify the criminal networks
and dismantle them State by State. Congress can play a vital
role in providing resources, incentives, and authority to the
Federal Government.
Thank you for the opportunity today to engage in this
conversation.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Urben follows:]
Prepared Statement of Christopher Urben
September 18, 2025
Committee Chairman Garbarino, Subcommittee Chairman Brecheen,
Committee Ranking Member Thompson, Subcommittee Ranking Member
Thanedar, and distinguished Members of this subcommittee, thank you for
the opportunity to address you today on the growth of Chinese organized
crime in the United States, and the role of marijuana cultivation and
distribution in facilitating that growth.
During my 24-year career as an agent and executive with the DEA, I
saw first-hand the damage done by transnational criminal organizations
(``TCOs'') and the increasingly significant operations of Chinese
transnational criminal organizations. Over the last 5 years of my
career, I led a team at DEA's Special Operations Division dedicated to
Project Sleeping Giant, which sought to understand, identify, and
target Chinese TCOs operating in the United States. We were
particularly concerned about the rise of Chinese money-laundering
networks (``CMLNs''), which have transformed narcotics trafficking by
offering dramatically lower rates, lower risk, and quicker return of
funds than the networks that had laundered money for TCOs previously.
Project Sleeping Giant's objectives included understanding the Chinese
organized crime threat, developing intelligence on it, and designing
enforcement operations to mitigate it.
As a result of this investigative and intelligence-gathering
operation, we learned that CMLNs launder money for a wide range of
criminal organizations, including Chinese suppliers of precursor
chemicals used in fentanyl production in Mexico; Mexican cartels that
manufacture fentanyl and other narcotics for U.S. consumption; human
trafficking networks; global operations that corrupt government
authorities; wildlife traffickers; and Mexican and other growers and
distributors of black-market marijuana within the United States.
I have been privileged to testify previously before Congress about
the growth of CMLNs and why they have been so effective in laundering
crime proceeds. Just weeks ago, on August 28, 2025, the U.S. Department
of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (``FinCEN'')
officially raised the alarm on the growth of CMLNs in the United States
and the threat they pose to the U.S. financial system.\1\ In connection
with that announcement, FinCEN issued an Advisory to U.S. financial
institutions and a Financial Trend Analysis highlighting the scope and
breadth of CMLN activity in the United States. The statistics cited by
FinCEN are eye-opening: in the past 5 years, over $312 billion in
transactions flagged as potentially tied to CMLN activity moved through
U.S. financial institutions. This statistic does not include funds
moved through the informal economy or through other means, including
cryptocurrency, which have not been subject to formal FinCEN oversight.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ https://www.fincen.gov/news/news-releases/fincen-issues-
advisory-and-financial-trend-analysis-chinese-money-laundering.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
So, what have CMLNs done with the proceeds of their criminal
activity? Starting in 2017, when a wave of marijuana legalization was
sweeping the country, we started seeing the proceeds get invested into
marijuana cultivation and distribution operations. The CMLNs (i)
established grow operations (``grows'') in suburban homes they
purchased and outfitted for indoor cultivation of high-end marijuana;
(ii) grew marijuana outdoors in rural, agricultural settings; and (iii)
distributed the marijuana and laundering the proceeds through existing
networks.
The speed and organization in which the Chinese-controlled
marijuana grows were established was remarkable, as the CMLNs provided
the funding for the grows, trafficked Chinese citizens into the United
States to live at the grow locations, tending to the plants on a 24/7
basis. They then trafficked the marijuana to cities for sale. All of
this happened seamlessly. It was extremely well-organized because it
was being managed by Chinese organized crime and Chinese money
launderers at the leadership and command/control level. In fact,
Chinese OC began to establish ``legitimate'' supply stores to sell the
equipment needed to grow marijuana on an industrial scale.
Since leaving the DEA and joining the global investigative firm of
Nardello & Co., I have seen CMLNs, and marijuana grows linked to CMLNs
or other TCOs, grow significantly larger. Fueled by the increased power
and scale of CMLNs, these grow operations have taken advantage of
additional legalization efforts around the country and the increased
demand for marijuana. They earn billions of dollars in revenue that in
turn feeds the other criminal activities that CMLNs support.
Legalization by States has been tied to the growth of illicit
Chinese-linked grow and distribution operations for several reasons.
First, legalization efforts have imposed high taxes and strict growing,
testing, and licensing requirements on government-approved growers and
sellers of marijuana. This has allowed the black market for the drug to
persist, as it offers a less expensive product--untaxed marijuana grown
without regulation--delivered more conveniently, via street
transactions or unlicensed channels, and quickly than government-
approved alternatives. Second, legalization reduced penalties for
unlawful possession and distribution of the drug at the same time it
created a lawful channel for it to be possessed and distributed. This
reduced the risks to criminal actors, including CMLNs, of severe
criminal sanctions as a result of their unlawful operations, freeing
them to invest their illicit proceeds in marijuana grow and
distribution operations. As a result, illicit marijuana production and
distribution, especially when run by TCOs, will always have a
competitive advantage over any licensed marijuana businesses.
Third, legalization increased marketplace demand by making it more
acceptable for consumers to use marijuana. This helps support the legal
market for the drug, but it also increases the supply of potential
customers for black-market marijuana that is distributed by CMLNs and
other TCOs.
The effects of Chinese TCOs' involvement in marijuana cultivation
and distribution have been extensive. Demand for land and structures
suitable for marijuana cultivation and distribution are affecting real
estate values in many locations in the country. The growth techniques
used in marijuana cultivation are harming the environment. The proceeds
are undermining banking laws and regulations while supplying income to
some of the most violent gangs.
My work in the DEA and subsequent investigative efforts, have
confirmed the existence of Chinese-controlled marijuana growing
operations in numerous States, including Arizona, California, Colorado,
Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon,
Rhode Island, and Washington. In the many other States that likely host
similar operations, State and local law enforcement have yet been
detected their existence or understand their links to national and
TCOs.
What is the best way to combat this threat? First, there is a
critical need for local, State, and Federal officials to recognize that
activities involving Chinese TCO-linked marijuana grow and distribution
operations are not ``just weed cases.'' They are harmful in and of
themselves, and they also help fuel CMLNs and other Chinese TCO-linked
activity such as human trafficking, fentanyl distribution, and other
dangerous and harmful activities. These cases should be prioritized as
they are linked to larger criminal networks and activities, including
prosecutable money-laundering schemes.
My time at DEA's Special Operations Division and my work at
Nardello & Co. have led me to conclude that the U.S. law enforcement
community and the U.S. financial system needs significant new
authority, guidance, and resources to understand and combat the threat
posed by Chinese organized crime and CMLOs. Recently, Congress and the
Executive branch designated the Mexican Cartels as foreign terrorist
organizations, and it is clear that--as recognized by FinCEN in its
recent guidance--CMLNs are key facilitators for the Mexican cartels.
While Congress has passed legislation like the FEND OFF Fentanyl Act
and the HALT Act and provided funding and authority to restrict cross-
border smuggling activity that facilitates the movement of marijuana
and crime proceeds, and FinCEN's recent guidance will help financial
institutions understand the scale and operations of CMLNs, more help is
needed.
State and local governments individually do not have the necessary
resources and authorities to attack and dismantle Chinese marijuana
trafficking networks. State and local governments typically lack the
subject-matter experts, language skills, data scientists, confidential
sources, and other law enforcement capabilities that are needed to
address this threat. Federal funding, coordination, and authority,
combined with State and local resources and authorities, are
desperately needed. It is essential to use Federal racketeering, money
laundering, and continuing criminal enterprise prosecutions to target
the leadership and command-and-control levels of these operations so
that their leaders understand the Federal Government will not be
lenient with them merely because they are selling drugs that have been
legalized in places, and under circumstances, that do not apply to
them. Using other Federal authorities to target related crimes such as
human smuggling, money laundering, tax evasion, and mortgage fraud, as
well as State and local laws and regulations governing cultivation
operations, including those governing land use and power and water
violations, will have a material impact on these criminal
organizations.
Even at the Federal level, more subject-matter experts, data
scientists, translators of Mandarin and other Chinese dialects, and
specialized task forces are needed to effectively target CMLNs and
other Chinese TCOs engaged in marijuana trafficking activity. A fully-
funded intergovernmental platform would allow law enforcement to better
identify criminal networks and dismantle them--State by State. Congress
can play a vital role by providing resources, incentives and authority
for the Federal Government to engage in intensive enforcement
operations to combat this threat.
Thank you for the opportunity to engage in this discussion today.
Chairman Brecheen. Thank you, Mr. Urben.
Members will be recognized by seniority for 5 minutes of
questioning. Additional rounds of questioning may be called
after all Members had the opportunity.
I now recognize myself for 5 minutes of questioning.
Director Anderson, can you describe how Oklahoma has become
a hotbed for illegal marijuana grow operations and can you put
that in the context as it is compared against the other 49
States?
Mr. Anderson. Well, what happened with Oklahoma was, No. 1,
Oklahoma is a very rural State, has a very--has a lack of
resources when it comes to public safety. We also have very
cheap farmland. So we also have the most liberal marijuana laws
in the Union. So whenever Oklahoma enacted the medical
marijuana statute that we passed, it opened up Pandora's box
for Oklahoma. So what you had, you had a very organized group
of Chinese nationals who actually--this isn't just in the
United States, they're global with what they're doing, but they
own the market of marijuana. They actually took a market that
was the No. 1 cash drug crop for the cartel and they own that
and they've owned that for a few several years now.
They moved those operations because of crackdowns that were
going on in New Mexico and California to Oklahoma. No. 1,
because it is rural to, No. 2, the land is very, very cheap.
What you can buy 80 acres in Oklahoma, what you can buy a block
for in California. Commonly, with our laxed laws, that is
exactly what happened in Oklahoma.
Chairman Brecheen. Mr. Urben, you mentioned a minute ago,
if I remember hearing you correctly, 300 billion is what you
all have seen is the 2025 number of illicit marijuana being
moved across the United States. Did I understand that stat
correctly, 300 billion?
Mr. Urben. I believe that's correct. It was in my written
statements. In the time period, it's a massive amount of money.
Chairman Brecheen. In tandem with what Mr. Anderson is
talking about, when they are looking at the amount of plants in
Oklahoma compared--that they have registration on, compared to
what they know they are able to produce and what has been
unreported, Oklahoma alone believes they have $150 billion per
year illicit marijuana industry. To put that in context, the
State budget of Oklahoma to run all areas of governance from
the State level in Oklahoma is 13 billion. Ten times the State
budget is the illegal activity of marijuana. It is why it has
sadly become, and I hate this for my State, a leading exporter
of marijuana in this Nation, illegal marijuana export. It is
almost half of the number that I think the DEA is looking at.
That is just astounding.
Director Anderson, what kind of response are we getting in
Oklahoma in terms of knowing that--what has opened this thing
up? What do you think that it is going to take for the average
person in Oklahoma to realize this is such a problem and that
this is not something that we can--as you cite the homicides in
Hennessey, we have got McAlester Ammunition Plant that there is
some activity adjacent to it, where one-third of all munitions
for this country come for in McAlester, Oklahoma, the
Congressional district that I represent, munitions for our
national defense and Chinese nationalists adjacent to it, that
there is some concern about illicit activity. What is it going
to take for Oklahoma, for the grassroots that ultimately
drives--manifest itself where the legislature then makes some
changes? What does the law enforcement have to do to get the
attention of Oklahoma officials?
Mr. Anderson. Thank you for the question. I wish I knew the
answer to that because I've been trying for 5 years. I will say
we are starting to gain traction now as far as global--or
nationwide what's going on in Oklahoma. Because literally,
what's going on in Oklahoma, whenever I talk about the 85
million pounds that's unaccounted for, that's going across the
United States. Understand that's what we know is there. There's
no telling how much that really is. Because if we know there's
85 million unaccounted for, is there another 85 million or 100
billion that we don't know about? Because typically, when we go
into these operations, they don't have metric tags on them.
They tag a few. You may have 30,000 plants, they may have a
thousand of those tagged. So there's a lot more that's not
tagged in there then there is tagged. But I do think we're
making some headway as far as letting people know what's going
on.
For me, this isn't about--I want to be very clear, this
isn't just about marijuana. I'm not talking about mom-and-pop
operations or even about people who utilize marijuana for
whatever medical purpose they use it for. I'm talking about
real organized transnational criminals who do not have our best
interests at heart. When I say our best interests, I'm talking
about the American people as a whole. So that is my biggest
concern with what's going on with this whole catastrophe in
Oklahoma.
Chairman Brecheen. I now recognize Mr. Thanedar for his 5
minutes of questions.
Mr. Thanedar. Thank you, Chairman. Look, drug cartels and
criminal organizations, including those from Mexico, Cuba, and
China, are illegally cultivating marijuana across the United
States. They often disguise their illegal operations by hiding
in States where law-abiding growers operate. But these illegal
marijuana grows are dangerous. They rely on human trafficking
for cheap labor and sexual exploitation. They steal water and
energy from surrounding communities. They sow the grounds with
pesticides and chemicals that seep or run off into our water.
They spray the marijuana with chemicals that end up being
consumed by people here in the United States.
Mr. Urben, how should the Federal Government respond to
illegal marijuana cultivation, especially when it comes to
combating international criminal organization that are
operating across the United States? What does a whole-of-
Government approach look like from your experience?
Mr. Urben. So from my experience, sir, I mean, you laid out
all the variety of crimes and activity that was taking place in
these cultivation areas. I think it's very simply we need to
mandate a solution from the Federal Government. We need to
provide the funding, for example, Mr. Anderson, in Oklahoma.
What I would suggest is we need to target the network and
defeat the whole network. So you can use Chinese organized
crime as an example, but you could also lay, you know, other
organized crime elements in this, but we'll stick with Chinese
organized crime right now.
Federal funding a task force that would target that entire
network operating in the United States abroad. The funding is
expensive for personnel and overtime, as Mr. Anderson would
probably attest to. There's air and land assets that you need,
but we need a Federal task force comprised of DEA, HSI, FBI to
include their counterintelligence side because there is a
counterintelligence component to this IRS, Fish and Wildlife,
and then, again, successes that we've had in the past,
partnering with State and locals who have the expertise and
intelligence and know-how on the ground and using their
authorities.
It's a national security issue. The task force funding
would employ essentially a platform of these Federal agencies
combined with subject-matter experts, translators of various
Chinese dialects in this example, data scientists and
targeters, funding to recruit confidential sources, and also
coordination with State and local prosecutors. The mandated
task force would target them with Federal prosecutors as well.
Mr. Thanedar. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Urben.
The Chinese have become the dominant players in illegal
marijuana cultivation, but they are not the only players. How
do we make sure the Federal Government is able to help State,
local, Tribal, and territorial law enforcement combat the big
guys, the Chinese criminal organizations as well as the smaller
players?
Look, in Michigan, earlier this week, a 50-year-old man was
arraigned on charges of tax evasion related to an illegal
marijuana grow operation that he ran for 2 years. When his home
was searched, police found more than 1,000 marijuana plants and
50 pounds of processed marijuana. Just 2 months ago, Michigan
State Police seized more than 10 million worth of marijuana at
an illegal marijuana grow operation. That grow operation was in
a 17,000-square-foot warehouse situated on 19 acres. In June, 4
Chinese nationals were arrested in Michigan for growing $5
million worth of illegal marijuana.
Mr. Urben, clearly illegal marijuana grow operations are
profitable business and they are hidden in plain sight. What
obstacles do Federal, State, and local law enforcement face
when trying to combat illegal marijuana grows? What can
Congress do to help find, prosecute these farms and those who
operate them?
Mr. Urben. It's great question. Continuing on from the
first question, the establishment of this task force would be
paralleled by Federal and State prosecutors that would utilize,
like I mentioned earlier, the racketeering, continuing criminal
enterprise, and money-laundering laws to target command-and-
control leadership at the highest levels in terms of the
organized crime groups, the Chinese operating in this area. The
task force would also have tactical ability to move from State
to State and enforce the law.
Mr. Thanedar. Thank you Mr. Urben. My time is up. Chairman,
I yield back.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman yields.
I now recognize Ms. Greene from Georgia for her 5 minutes
of questioning.
Ms. Greene. Before my 5 minutes, Mr. Chairman, ask
unanimous consent to enter for the record this article, ``Triad
Weed: How Chinese Marijuana Grows Took Over Rural Maine.'' This
is an article that highlights how Chinese TCOs are basically
taking over Maine via these illegal grow farms.
Chairman Brecheen. Without objection, so ordered.
triad weed: how chinese marijuana grows took over rural maine
By Steve Robinson, November 8, 2023
Updated: January 24, 2024
https://www.themainewire.com/2023/11/triad-weed-illegal-
chinese-marijuana-grows-are-all-over-maine/
Illegal Chinese marijuana grows have taken over much of rural
Maine.
The government is either incapable--or unwilling--to do anything
about it.
The Maine Wire has identified more than 100 properties that are
part of a sprawling network of Chinese-owned sites operating as
unlicensed, illicit cannabis growing operations in rural Maine.
According to an unclassified memo from the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) obtained by the Maine Wire, the illicit grows
are operated by Asian Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs).
The properties cover Somerset County, Penobscot County, Kennebec
County, Franklin County, Androscoggin County, and Oxford County.
The sites were purchased over the past 3 years by single adults,
primarily from New York and Massachusetts, using cash or financing
arranged through a handful of mortgage companies.
The Maine Wire investigation began following the leak of a separate
DHS memo that revealed the existence of more than 270 such sites in
Maine.
That memo, first reported by Jennie Taer of the Daily Caller News
Foundation, offered the first public confirmation of what law
enforcement officials have long known, but what neighbors to these
properties and legal marijuana entrepreneurs have only suspected.
Namely, that Chinese foreign nationals are exploiting Maine's lax
marijuana laws, the Biden Administration's immigration policies, and
cheap real estate in rural Maine to grow a fortune using exploited
illegal alien laborers.
Nationwide, there are approximately 749 properties that DHS has
linked to Asian TCOs.
The leaked memo included a spreadsheet, which has not been made
public, that identified ``270 properties within [Maine] that are
actively used by the Chinese in relation to their operations.''
Local, State, county, and Federal officials, speaking mostly on the
condition of anonymity, have confirmed to the Maine Wire that various
law enforcement agencies have known about this foreign network of
illicit drug manufacturing and distribution for more than two years.
On Sept. 15, DHS sent the following memo to Maine law enforcement
asking for help gathering intel on the properties:
We are requesting a response by State, county, and/or local law
enforcement officials with any information regarding illegal marijuana
grows being operated in their areas by suspected Asian Transnational
Criminal Organizations (TCO). This collection effort is supporting a
national intelligence gathering initiative to identify a comprehensive
picture of the threat posed to national security by Asian TCOs
operating illegally in the United States.
A typical response may include:
confirmation that this activity is occurring
the number of suspected grows in your area of responsibility
reports by concerned citizens or local officials relating to
illegal grow operations by Asian TCOs or any other information
respondents may deem of value.
``There are hundreds of these operations occurring throughout the
State. It's upsetting to those who live near these operations, and even
those who are following Maine laws and procedures,'' Penobscot County
Sheriff Troy Morton told the DCNF.
Maine's congressional delegation has called upon the Department of
Justice to shutter the operation, but Attorney General Merrick Garland
has yet to respond in writing.
Most of the properties were acquired after Maine legalized the sale
of recreational pot in 2020.
According to the DHS memos, the sites are operated by Chinese
foreign nationals, some who are in the U.S. illegally. DHS believes the
network earns an estimated total income of $4.37 billion per year, some
of which is returned to entities in the People's Republic of China.
The locations of the sites--and the names of their owners--have not
been publicly released.
Triad Weed in Rural Maine
Marijuana grown at these sites is notorious in Maine's legal
cannabis industry as ``Triad weed.''
``When I say they function like a mafia, it is absolutely true,''
one longtime veteran of Maine's medicinal and recreational pot industry
told the Maine Wire. ``They have a very intricate network.''
Scrupulous dispensaries avoid purchasing or selling marijuana from
the illicit grows because it has a reputation for containing
pesticides, fungicides, and other banned or harmful contaminants.
But legal growers all agree that at least some Triad weed is
entering Maine markets.
``I would say most of their product ends up skipping across the
border,'' the industry veteran said. ``But the shit that stays in Maine
is what is helping to contribute to the collapse of flower prices.''
The operators of these foreign-owned sites are also notorious
around grow supply shops in Maine, where they are often found buying
thousands of dollars in cultivation supplies.
Speaking little to no English, the operators acquire supplies by
pointing at images on their phones or by having someone out-of-state
translate over the phone.
According to DHS, the Asian TCOs use the proceeds of the marijuana
grows to fund other illegal activities, including narcotics trafficking
and human trafficking.
The DCNF reported, based on Maine and Federal sources, that many of
the participants in the operation are either in the U.S. illegally or
have applied for asylum status or permanent residency.
Morton, the sheriff of Penobscot County, told DCNF most individuals
under investigation for being involved in illegal marijuana grows
aren't U.S. citizens.
``Regardless of where the individuals are from, the true problem
involves conflicting State and Federal laws. We also have little to no
oversight, allowing for criminal activity to occur at a high degree,''
Morton said.
Morton declined to elaborate on those comments, instead referring
the Maine Wire to the U.S. Attorney of Maine.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney of Maine declined to comment
for this story.
A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, the agency that
published the original leaked memo, declined to comment on the memo.
``The US Border Patrol coordinates closely with our interagency
partners when conducting investigations and when taking enforcement
actions,'' the spokesperson said. ``It would not be appropriate for the
USBP to comment on behalf of other agencies.''
``Furthermore, Border Patrol does not publicly disclose sources of
information, investigative methods, or other information that may
jeopardize the safety of witnesses orotherwise compromise any
investigation,'' said the spokesperson.
The Maine Wire offered to provide the U.S. Attorney of Maine and
the Maine State Police with a list of illicit foreign-owned marijuana
grows in Maine prior to the publication of this story, but both
declined.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, which has been investigating
illegal Chinese marijuana grows in Maine for at least 2 years, declined
to comment for this story.
Finding Maine's Illegal Grow Sites--and Their Owners
A review of real estate records, physical site inspections, and
interviews with hundreds of Mainers has identified more than 100
Chinese-owned properties in Maine--all purchased by single men and
women from out-of-state, primarily Brooklyn and Staten Island, over the
past 3 years.
The buyers often pay cash, but dozens of the properties carry
mortgages from just a few finance companies.
The sites are almost all in rural Maine and show evidence of active
or recently active marijuana grow operations, including grow supplies
and the obvious smell of marijuana even at a considerable distance.
Almost all of the sites have had extensive modifications to houses,
garages, and outbuildings to support marijuana growing, including the
installation of 300- or 400-amp commercial grade electricity service,
consumer-owned utility poles, and multiple heat pumps.
Neighbors confirm that the houses frequently smell of marijuana and
several times a year, a white van with New York or Massachusetts plates
will arrive and depart. Neighbors also reported, in some cases, seeing
tractor-trailer trucks delivering grow supplies.
The properties the Maine Wire has identified account for thousands
of acres of land in rural Maine and tens of millions of dollars worth
of real estate. Marijuana industry experts said a standard 2,500-
square-foot house in Maine could, if properly renovated into a
marijuana grow, generate $1 million to $3 million in marijuana per
year.
Although most of the properties are owned under the names of
Chinese men and women from New York or Massachusetts, some of them are
owned through LLCs.
The Maine Wire was not able to independently confirm the
immigration or citizenship status of the owners of these properties;
however, nothing in U.S. or Maine law would prevent a Chinese national
from purchasing a property in Maine, even if they were in the country
illegally.
The Maine Wire has also discovered records tying multiple sites
together, including car registrations, municipal waste permits, real
estate records, and other public records, which, taken together,
support the determination that the grow sites are connected and
centrally controlled under an umbrella organization.
At a grow site in Fairfield, for example, there was a Toyota
Corolla registered to the owner of a separate site in Garland. That
same vehicle was later observed at the site in Garland.
At a different Fairfield site, there was a truck with Mass. plates
that had a dump permit sticker for Dexter (40 miles East) and a dump
sticker for Wilton (40 miles West).
Law enforcement sources confirmed that they are aware of the
existence of multiple sites in both Dexter and Wilton.
Several of the properties that show obvious signs of active or
recently active marijuana growing operations have been purchased by
Chinese individuals from New York or Massachusetts only to be resold
shortly after to other Chinese individuals from New York or Brooklyn.
Indoor Marijuana Cultivation 101
Before we get to the sites the Maine Wire identified, it will be
helpful to go over some basics of growing marijuana indoors.
The chief necessity is abundant electricity. That electricity is
used to power the grow lights, which consume substantially more energy
than your average LED lighting.
But because those lights also generate a tremendous amount of heat,
the grow rooms require cooling and ventilation equipment.
The ideal temperature for growing marijuana is 75-80 degrees
Fahrenheit. Without significant air conditioning, the lighting would
make a grow room too hot.
The primary way the sites in Maine cool their grow rooms and
control humidity is through heat pumps.
The combined electricity consumption of the lighting and the heat
pumps requires robust upgrades to electrical infrastructure at a
typical residential property.
Most of the sites identified by the Maine Wire show evidence of
recent electrical upgrades and the addition of multiple heat pumps.
Linesmen from Central Maine Power and local electricians both
shared, on the condition of anonymity, stories about being asked to
upgrade residential buildings with the power capacity typically only
needed by energy-intensive businesses.
``Usually it's like a 10 KVA transformer that they overload out of
a, like a regular house. You won't even be able to tell,'' said a CMP
Linesman. ``And so we gotta go upgrade and usually one person will come
out and stare at us the whole time. They usually don't know any
English.''
One electrician in central Maine was asked to install commercial
grade service to a mobile home--a job he refused because he found the
customers, who did not speak English, too sketchy.
``I met with them one time a couple years back but didn't like what
I was seeing,'' the electrician said.
The two most common electrical upgrades encountered at these sites
are new 300- or 400-amp breaker boxes and consumer-owned utility poles.
Without such upgrades, running a grow operation on common
residential wiring risks starting a fire, as has happened at sites in
Canaan, Winterport, and Vassalboro.
In addition to electricity, the indoor grow rooms need to seal out
ambient light, which is why all of the windows are boarded up at these
locations.
Ambient light during a dark-cycle can cause young marijuana plants
to turn into hermaphrodites, which decreases the potency of the flower.
Here are some more in-depth looks at sites the Maine Wire has
identified based on real estate records, photographs provided by
sources, public records, and interviews with law enforcement and
residents of the towns.
629 Norridgewock Road, Fairfield
This 4-bed, 2-bath house was purchased by 32-year-old Juan Lin on
July 30, 2021, according to Somerset Registry of Deeds records.
The windows are obscured, not with curtains or blinds, but with a
type of foil foam board used to keep out ambient light.
On the back of the house, there are three active heat pumps, two on
the main house and one on the semi-detached garage.
The home also boasts an electrical entrance that far exceeds the
standard residential electrical equipment.
In 2021, prior to Lin's purchase, the home did not have any heat
pumps or commercial grade electricity.
A master electrician licensed to work in Maine said the electrical
equipment on the side of the home appeared to be a 400-amp service with
two 200-amp manual disconnects--an expensive arrangement that is rare
to install on a residential property.
In layman's terms, the house is consuming far more energy than your
average Maine home.
It also reeks of pot, according to neighbors.
Inside the home, photos show clear evidence of a marijuana growing
operation. (Note: these were provided by a source who asked to remain
anonymous.)
Legal Maine cultivators consulted by the Maine Wire assessed that
this is what a standard grow operation looks like, noting the chemical
containers, the newly installed benching on either side of the room,
and and wiring.
This picture shows the same room prior to 2021.
At the time the more recent photos were taken, there were two
vehicles on the property. A charcoal gray truck with Massachusetts
license plates and a large white cargo van, also with Mass. plates.
According to public records, the only other address associated with
Lin is in Quincy, Mass., where he appears to live with several family
members.
Though Lin owns the property, there is no evidence that he has
himself participated in the cultivation or trafficking of marijuana.
The Maine Wire has identified more than 100 similar sites in Maine
that all fit many elements of the same pattern: (1) purchased in the
past 3 years by a single Chinese men or women from New York or
Massachusetts; (2) strong odor of marijuana even from a distance of
100's of feet; (3) rubbish from commercial grow products; (4) massive
upgrades to the electrical capacity of the property; (5) property has
large garage, outbuilding, or barn; (6) all windows are completely
blacked out; (7) multiple security cameras; and (8) multiple heat pumps
running constantly.
4 Smith Road & 43 Cape Cod Hill Road, New Sharon
In New Sharon (population: 1,500), the Maine Wire identified two
obvious marijuana grows purchased within the last 3 years.
A property at 4 Smith Road was purchased in July 2021 by Wen Bin
Zhao, 34, of Brooklyn.
The house bears the tell-tale signs: all the windows boarded up,
electrical upgrades, and, most tellingly, an overpowering odor of
marijuana that could be easily detected from hundreds of feet away.
Similarly, this massive property at 43 Cape Cod Hill Road was
purchased in June 2021 by Muhua Chen, 38, of Staten Island, N.Y.
During a visit in October, windows visible from the public road and
the neighbors driveway appeared completely boarded up and the odor of
marijuana was powerful (though that could have been because the site is
about 200 yards from 5 Smith Road).
Although Chen and Zhao's names appear on the deeds of these
properties, there is no evidence that they have themselves cultivated
or trafficked illicit marijuana.
Madison: Golf Course Road and Lakewood Road
Madison is host to at least three active indoor marijuana growing
operations. The operations are at 383 Lakewood Road, 288 Golf Course
Road, and 21 Golf Course Road.
When the Maine Wire visited these three properties attempting to
interview the occupants, we observed the tell-tale signs of marijuana
grows--blacked out windows, electrical upgrades, multiple heat pumps,
and the obvious odor of marijuana.
The 21 Golf Course Road is owned by Changju Wu and was previously
owned by Joe Hao Liang, who also owns 383 Lakewood Road.
The house at 288 Golf Course Road was owned by Yanyi Wu, 30.
Wu, who previously lived in Brooklyn, purchased the property in
Oct. 2020 and sold it this September to Jamie Yajing Chen, also
previously from Brooklyn.
Wu is also the owner of a house in Embden. Although Wu obtained
financing for the Embden location, the two Madison properties were
purchased in cash.
Like the Fairfield location, the property at 383 Lakewood Rd. has
undergone significant renovations since it was purchased.
Photos available on Zillow from before Wu acquired the property
show it had no heat pumps installed on the front of the building.
While attempting to contact Wu at the house for an interview, the
Maine Wire observed three heat pumps on the front of the building and
one on the back. Comparing the before and after pictures also shows
that the garage has had new power service installed within the past 3
years.
When the Maine Wire visited, every window was blacked out with
sheet rock and blankets, and the smell of marijuana was apparent.
A roughly 5 minute drive from the Lakewood Road properties brings
you to Golf Course Road.
At 288 Golf Course Road, the house smelled strongly marijuana when
the Maine Wire attempted to contact the owner.
A vent on the side of the garage was pumping hot air that smelled
strongly of marijuana.
Although a woman came out of the house to talk, conducting an
interview was impossible because she only spoke Mandarin.
The occupant, a middle-aged Chinese woman, called an unidentified
person who attempted to translate and conveyed that they were
uninterested in talking.
The windows on the house and the garage were all boarded up with
either foam insulation or sheetrock, and the home had commercial grade
electrical service. The home also had multiple security cameras.
Like with other properties, before and after pictures show
significant changes to the electrical equipment on the house following
its purchase.
On the same road is another site that a neighbor described as a
Chinese-owned marijuana growing operation.
The neighbor, who asked not to be named, said it was common
knowledge on the road that the house was being used to grow marijuana.
The aroma left little reason to doubt his opinion.
Comparing older pictures of the property to how it appears now
shows significant modifications to the five car garage, including
window covers to exclude ambient light.
169 Baker Road, Winterport
Fires are not uncommon at these sites.
This house in Winterport was purchased in August 2021 by Wanzhen
Huang, 50, of Brooklyn, N.Y. The purchase price was $182,000, and
Zillow currently estimates it at $348,900, but Zillow might not know
about the unrepaired fire damage. This is how the home looks now.
A neighbor took this picture shortly after the Winterport house
caught fire.
When the Maine Wire visited the home seeking an interview with the
occupants, it appeared abandoned.
346 Ohio Hill Road Rt 23, Fairfield
This dilapidated Ohio Hill Road house was purchased by Yifeng Yu,
38, of El Monte, Calif., in February 2020. Images provided to the Maine
Wire by a source who asked to remain anonymous show marijuana growing
equipment littering the property, including plant pots, fertilizer
containers, and soil supplements.
195 West Road, Chesterville
In Chesterville, the Maine Wire observed the strong odor of
marijuana at this property.
A source, who asked to remain anonymous, said CBP has visited this
property and even used a hidden camera to photograph it over a period
of months.
A CBP agent declined to comment when asked about this property.
Harming Legal Growers
Legal marijuana cultivators told the Maine Wire that licensed
operators have long believed that at least some weed grown illegally at
sites controlled by Chinese organized crime is making into Maine's
legal marijuana market.
The influx of cheap Chinese weed--which cannabis aficionados have
dubbed ``Triad Weed''--is, they believe, depressing prices.
``[Marijuana prices] went from $2,800 during COVID and right before
COVID,'' said one medicinal grower. ``Now, for a good pound of flower,
it's like $1,250. So your profit on that after your CMP bill, your
profit on that is like, you know, $600.''
``All these little guys and all these caregivers that are doing the
right thing are getting shut out and shutting down,'' they said.
The plummeting price for legal cannabis in Maine coincides well
with when Chinese buyers began scooping up rural Maine properties and
converting them into grow operations.
How Much Money Are These Sites Making?
First off: How much marijuana could each site produce?
According to industry experts the Maine Wire consulted, the amount
of marijuana produced at a given spot would depend on the skill of the
growers, the resources at their disposal, and how much of the home and
garage has been dedicated to grow rooms.
Assuming maximum efficiency, a 2,500 square-foot house could
accommodate 50 grow lights, which would produce 100 pounds of processed
marijuana per harvest. Such an operation could expect four to 12
harvests per year, or 400 to 1,200 pounds of marijuana flower.
How much is that in U.S. dollars? That depends on where the flower
is ultimately sold. If the flower is sold into Maine's barely regulated
medicinal market, it's almost certainly being sold for less than $800
per pound. However, if the flower is being trafficked back to NYC, the
black market price is closer to $3,000 per pound.
Although there are a considerable range of factors, multiple
individuals told the Maine Wire that it was realistic to conclude that
an operation of this type could fetch $1.2M to $3.6M, not including the
considerable costs of electricity, fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides,
and, in some cases, mortgage payments.
This will be the first in a series of stories from the Maine Wire
concerning Chinese organized crime in Maine.
Future articles in this series will focus on the financial
arrangements that have allowed Chinese buyers to purchase so much real
estate in Maine, the political response to this problem from Augusta,
how the Office of Cannabis Policy understands the problem, and what
steps law enforcement is taking.
Edward Tomic and Graham Pollard contributed to this report.
Ms. Greene. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
According to--I apologize. CBP encountered record numbers
of Chinese nationals crossing the border under the previous
Democrat administration. During the last 4 years there were
over 170,000 Chinese nationals who were encountered nationwide,
most of whom were caught crossing between the ports of entry.
This does not include the potential Chinese nationals that are
among the 2 million gotaways who completely evaded U.S.
authorities are now--and now are roaming American communities.
Open-border policies have consequences and America is paying
the price.
In 2024 alone there were nearly 79,000 Chinese nationals
encountered at the border. This is up from an average of only
1,500 a year over the previous decade. The majority of Chinese
illegally entering the United States were single military-age
men. One hundred seventy thousand people, Chinese nationals, is
equivalent to more than 176 U.S. Army battalions. Or put it
another way, they total more than 35 Army brigades or nearly 12
divisions or nearly 4 corps or 3 field armies. That is how we
can translate that just for people's understanding.
According to the DEA, Chinese TCOs have become dominant in
the U.S. illicit marijuana market, establishing highly
sophisticated multi-State operations. In New Mexico, a recent
Federal indictment exposed a 25-acre farm, 400-acre cultivation
scheme on Navajo Nation lands tied to Chinese investors in
recruited labor resulting in the seizure of more than 260,000
plants, 60,000 pounds of marijuana. The networks integrate
profits from cannabis into fentanyl trafficking, human
smuggling, and global money-laundering schemes creating
significant national security challenges just as our witnesses
have stated today.
The American people don't know about this. This is, you
know, largely believed, especially in younger generations, that
marijuana is a good thing, that it helps relieve stress, helps
them sleep at night. Then there is also people that use it for
PTSD and have success with it. There is medical uses of
marijuana. But the American people have no idea that Chinese
transnational criminal organizations are involved and that it
is leading to other extremely terrible and dangerous crimes and
fentanyl, honestly.
Director Anderson, how do these Chinese-backed illegal
marijuana operations run? For the regular American, they are
going, well, how is a crime organization from China able to run
a marijuana farm?
Mr. Anderson. These are very, very sophisticated. When I
say sophisticated, this is at a level that law enforcement
across the Nation has never seen before because they are that
sophisticated and that complex. They're layered and they're
hidden under many, many layers of LLCs and ownerships. When you
begin to--for example, in Oklahoma, you may have a John Smith
who is the owner, the 75 percent owner of the marijuana grove.
As you dig through that thing, you'll find out that John Smith
has never even been to the marijuana grove. John Smith was paid
$3,500 to put his name on a license because the Chinese
national can't do that in the State of Oklahoma. That's how
that happened in Oklahoma.
But these--you have people in Flushing, New York, and in
California that run a lot of stuff across the whole United
States that may not ever step foot in the State of Oklahoma
other than to make a visit every once in a while. But these are
very well organized, very sophisticated. It's not--whenever I
talk about this, this is really a global thing that's going on
with the Chinese nationals. If you look at what's going on down
in Latin America, what the Chinese are doing down in Latin
America, even to the Caribbean, they're building roads. I mean,
they're really investing in stuff. But there's a reason why
this is going on. Once again, this comes right back to the
United States, to the national security and what's going on
in--as well as to Oklahoma.
But you're right, I don't think the majority of the people
in the United States realize what's going on. People in the
marijuana industry really hate on me. They think I'm just
against marijuana.
Ms. Greene. Right.
Mr. Anderson. I'm not--it hasn't--for me it has nothing to
with do with marijuana. If someone wants to ingest marijuana,
that's their business. For me, it has everything to do with the
transnational criminal organizations who are doing things such
as trafficking in very large amounts of marijuana. They are
laundering billions, not millions. Oklahoma is probably over
100--well over $100 billion just for Oklahoma. The murders, the
sex trafficking, which is probably one of the most deplorable
things that we have to deal with. How we treat other humans
like this, I just don't get it. But the rest of the United
States probably don't know really what's going on.
It's not just Oklahoma. Yes, Oklahoma is kind-of the
epicenter of kind-of what's going on right now because we do
have such a liberal marijuana law. But the sex trafficking, the
violent crimes, the underground casinos, the underground
banking is going on all across the United States.
Ms. Greene. Wow. Thank you. I am sorry, I am out of time.
Mr. Chairman, we need to explore how we can help some State and
Federal work together to trace the money and track this down.
Thank you.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentlelady yields.
I now recognize Mrs. Ramirez for her 5 minutes of
questioning.
Mrs. Ramirez. Thank you, Chair and Ranking Member. Before
we get started, Chairman, I want to ask unanimous consent to
include into the record, ``Children of Couple Taken by ICE in
Cicero Road Stop Speak out,'' and, ``What Happened to Silverio
Villegas Gonzalez.''
Chairman Brecheen. So sorry.
Mrs. Ramirez. I can do it again.
Chairman Brecheen. Without objection, so ordered.
Articles Submitted by Hon. Delia C. Ramirez
`heartbroken and devastated,' children of cicero couple arrested by ice
in traffic stop ask for their release
By Adriana Perez/[email protected]/Chicago Tribune
PUBLISHED: September 17, 2025 at 10:53 AM CDT
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/09/17/heartbroken-and-
devastated-children-of-couple-arrested-by-ice-in-
cicero-traffic-stop-ask-for-their-release/
On their youngest son's 10th birthday, Federal immigration agents
detained a couple who immigrated from Mexico and have lived in Cicero
for 18 years, family and lawyers said Tuesday.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Moises
Enciso Trejo, 41, and Constantina Ramirez Meraz, 43, during a traffic
stop Sunday at Cicero Avenue and Pershing Road on the Chicago-Cicero
border. They had been driving with one of their four children, their
eldest son, to his university to drop off school materials and later
meet the rest of the family in church.
``The children are heartbroken and devastated by these arrests,''
said Shelby Vcelka, managing partner at Victory Law Office, which is
representing the Enciso-Ramirez family. ``They are deeply concerned
about the well-being of their parents and want them to come home.''
The son, 22, was also detained but released 2 hours later,
according to Vcelka. Citizenship requests for the eldest son and a
daughter, 19, under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program
are currently pending approval, the family said.
A spokesperson for ICE did not confirm when the couple would be
deported, citing ``operational security.''
``What we can tell you though is that both are in the country
illegally, in violation of Federal immigration law and are expected to
remain in ICE custody, pending immigration proceedings,'' the
spokesperson said Wednesday.
Viral videos shared on social media showed the daughter and two
underage siblings--both U.S. citizens, according to the family--on the
scene as well. Lawyers later clarified that the three of them had not
been in the vehicle at the time of the traffic stop, but rather showed
up shortly afterward when they received a call with ``the unthinkable
news'' about the arrests, Vcelka said.
According to a family statement, the ICE agents pressured the
younger siblings, 12 and 10, with questions and, without verifying her
age, they handed the car keys to the older sister, leaving her and the
children with two abandoned vehicles on the side of the road.
``Their 10-year-old son watched helplessly as his parents were
taken away on his birthday--a day meant for joy, not fear,'' the
statement reads. ``Moises Enciso and Constantina Ramirez do not have a
criminal background. They are beloved parents and valuable members of
the community.''
A search of court records for Cook and collar counties did not turn
up any criminal history for anyone with matching birthdays named Enciso
Trejo and Ramirez Meraz.
Family said that Ramirez, the mother, works at a local restaurant,
and that Enciso, the father, is a construction worker known to be
friendly and outgoing among neighbors. He was anxiously waiting to
reunite with his mother, who was going to visit from Mexico for the
first time in two decades, this coming Sunday--plans that, like his
son's birthday celebration, were also put on hold when Enciso was taken
into custody.
``The uncertainty and fear of not knowing when their parents will
be released has been agonizing,'' the family statement said.
According to lawyers, the children are currently under the care of
relatives.
``Our office will pursue every available option to fight for Moises
and Constantina's release and to protect their rights under the law,''
Vcelka said.
Chicago Tribune's Caroline Kubzansky contributed.
______
what happened to silverio villegas gonzalez
An immigration agent shot and killed an unarmed 38-year-old
father outside Chicago on Friday--and their initial
narrative of events was quickly disproven by videos
captured by witnesses.
by Steve Held, Raven Geary, Dave Byrnes, and Shawn Mulcahy
September 15, 2025
https://chicagoreader.com/news/ice-shooting-silverio-
villegas-gonzalez-franklin-park/
Less than 1 week into President Donald Trump's surge of deportation
arrests in Chicago, an immigration agent shot and killed a man during a
traffic stop on a near suburban street Friday morning.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identified the man as
Silverio Villegas Gonzalez, confirmed by the Mexican consulate as a 38-
year-old Mexican citizen from the state of Michoacan. An unidentified
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fatally shot him in the
heavily Latine Chicago suburb of Franklin Park during what DHS
described as a ``vehicle stop,'' according to an official statement.
The statement, which was immediately quoted by media outlets,
places much of the blame on Villegas Gonzalez for his own death. The
agency also claimed Villegas Gonzalez drove his car at ICE agents
conducting the vehicle stop, resulting in serious injuries.
``He refused to follow law enforcements [sic] commands and drove
his car at law enforcement officers,'' the statement reads. ``One of
the ICE officers was hit by the car and dragged a significant distance.
Fearing for his own life, the officer fired his weapon.''
Bystander videos and eyewitness accounts, however, tell a different
story.
Security footage near the scene in Franklin Park, as reported by
CBS News, shows two plainclothes agents approaching a silver sedan that
had been blocked from moving by an unmarked SUV. The sedan eventually
reverses away from the two agents, and the officer on the passenger
side points his firearm at the vehicle.
As Villegas Gonzalez drives away from the agents--not toward them,
as DHS claimed--the agent on the passenger side aims his weapon at the
back of Villegas Gonzalez's car. Two gunshots can be heard in a
separate security video. The second agent is not visible during the
shooting, and it remains unclear which agent fired their weapon.
Other footage that circulated on social media following the
shooting, recorded by on-scene witnesses, shows two men in body armor
pulling Villegas Gonzalez out of his vehicle after it crashed into the
undercarriage of a semi truck about 100 feet away from the initial
traffic stop.
The pair of agents, who appear to be operating alone, are then seen
laying Villegas Gonzalez's bloodied body on the ground and providing
first aid. One can be heard yelling for bystanders to call 9-1-1.
Neither appears seriously injured.
``He got blood . . . all over his neck and his head,'' said a local
witness, who asked not to be identified, of Villegas Gonzalez's
condition when an ambulance arrived. The witness emerged from her
apartment building to see plainclothes agents in body armor with no
agency lettering wrapping Villegas Gonzalez's gunshot wounds in gauze.
Villegas Gonzalez was pronounced dead after being taken to the
nearby Loyola University Medical Center, according to a Friday evening
statement from the Village of Franklin Park.
DHS reports the allegedly injured officer is in stable condition.
Witness video obtained by Unraveled appears to show no other agents
present in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.
A search of Cook County court records shows the beloved father and
community member was cited for four minor vehicle violations between
2010 and 2019. Just one involved a moving violation--speeding--more
than 12 years ago in May 2013.
Verified ICE sightings around the greater Chicago area in the last
week already show a pattern of traffic stops that have led to
immigration enforcement arrests. A mix of plainclothes agents and
members of the Chicago field office's special response team (SRT), in
fully militarized gear, have been spotted pulling over drivers.
This so-called ``jump out'' maneuver has been used for years by the
Chicago Police Department's tactical teams. Police departments in urban
areas will often use an unmarked SUV to quickly cut off a target
vehicle in traffic, as plainclothes officers jump out and bark orders
at the vehicle's occupants. The tactic is predominantly used to stop
Black and Latine drivers, and the stops cause confusion and panic for
drivers boxed in their cars, frequently leading to violent police
encounters.
A similar maneuver led to the death of Dexter Reed in Chicago in
March 2024. Officers involved in Reed's death have since received
suspensions for violating multiple department policies in how they
conducted traffic stops.
ICE agents are rarely seen wearing body cameras, and municipal
police department policies do not apply to any of their law enforcement
activities. Likewise, Federal agencies are not mandated to identify
agents who fire their service weapon. There is no set time frame in
which they have to release relevant records via the Freedom of
Information Act, and no policy Unraveled is aware of mandates time off-
duty for Federal agents involved in a shooting.
Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were seen
processing the crime scene. As of press time, it remains unclear if the
Illinois State Police or any other local law enforcement will be
involved in the investigation into the incident.
There is a short history of State police investigating fatal
shootings by Federal agents--in 2024, the Arkansas State Police
investigated the shooting death of a local official by agents with the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and in 2021, the
Connecticut State Police investigated a shooting involving an FBI
agent. Prosecutors declined to prosecute either case.
The incident has sparked uproar in the community amid the Trump
administration's targeting of Chicago for heightened immigration
enforcement.
``This blood that was spilled today will be a stain on the history
of our Nation,'' said Illinois State senator Karina Villa of Villegas
Gonzalez's killing at a press conference on Friday afternoon.
Community remains defiant
Also on Friday, only a few miles south of where Villegas Gonzalez
was killed, protesters demonstrated for more than 12 hours outside an
ICE processing facility in the suburb of Broadview.
The demonstration overlapped with a long-running weekly prayer
service for migrants detained inside the facility.
Protesters, armed with handmade signs and sidewalk chalk,
repeatedly confronted heavily armored Federal agents in face coverings
as the agents moved vehicles in and out of the facility over the course
of the day. These included a transit van with captives banging from the
inside.
According to a September 2 statement from Broadview mayor Katrina
Thompson, ICE will continue operating out of the Broadview facility as
part of a ``large-scale enforcement campaign''--part of the Trump
administration's so-called Operation Midway Blitz--until at least mid-
October.
Immigration rights organizations are unable to provide an accurate
estimate of the number of people snatched by Federal agents over the
last several days, surely in part due to the chaotic and dispersed
nature of the ICE operation.
``I don't have a sense of a number except to say that it is
certainly higher than what ICE is reporting publicly,'' said a
spokesperson for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee
Rights in a statement. ``We know ICE's history of exploiting personal
tragedies to conduct broad and unnecessary operations with increasingly
aggressive, and now fatal, tactics. We also know that our partners have
conducted legal intake for individuals who are not among those on DHS's
press release from earlier this week, and that abductions are still
happening into the weekend.''
Before dawn, protesters blocked the main vehicle entrance to the
ICE facility. Agents shifted to using a separate garage attached to the
building after sunrise, repeatedly sending out teams to guard vehicle
transfers. Local police from Broadview and Maywood, who were also on
scene, joined with the agents' line on at least one occasion, and at
other times formed a loose line in front of the facility itself.
At multiple points over the course of the day, agents took to the
facility's roof, some armed with long guns and others seemingly
recording the crowd with smartphones. One agent also appeared to be
piloting a drone over the crowd around 10:30 AM.
Video captured by witnesses shows the agents becoming more
aggressive as the day wore on and the crowd thinned.
Hours after an ICE agent fatally shot Villegas Gonzalez in Franklin
Park, SRT agents deployed projectile chemical munitions on the crowd.
These included chemical gas, as well as pepper balls fired at a
protester who was using a mobility aid.
``They are hurting families, and they need to stop,'' said one
protester at the Broadview facility, who asked not to be named, of the
immigration agents' activity in the Chicago area. ``We don't want them
in Chicago. We don't want them here in the United States.''
Editor's note (9/16/25, 3:30 PM): Official communications immediately
following Silverio Villegas Gonzalez's killing incorrectly identified
him as Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez. This story has been updated to
reflect the correct spelling.
Mrs. Ramirez. Thank you, Chairman.
This is our oversight committee, and I think it is
important to use every opportunity here to do the oversight
work. I want to thank the panelists that are here, but I need
to talk about what is happening here, right now, all over the
country. I want to start by saying that the Department of
Homeland Security is a national security threat. I call it a
force terrorizing communities with good reason. Men in masks,
unmarked cars, no badges, no body cameras, and arrests without
valid warrants all result in fear, chaos, and harm.
Given that this is a subcommittee on oversight, I want to
show 2 clips today. One clip shows DHS agents engaging children
whose family members were just abducted. The second clip you
are going to see today shows the murder of Silverio Villegas
Gonzalez by DHS agents. Let's watch the footage.
[Videos shown.]
Mrs. Ramirez. Shot. Let's break it down. In the first
video, ICE says the lie. ICE encountered a mother and her 2
children who weren't detained and then kept asking, are they
citizens? If you have a warrant, if you know that they are not
citizens, why are you asking if they are citizens? Here is the
facts: ICE detained a mother, a father, and their son, a
college student, that is a dreamer. They encountered the
couple's 3 other children and aggressively questioned a 12- and
10-year-old. Given that we know that the parents had no public
criminal record, how did DHS agents know to pull them over? We
know. It is because they are Brown.
I cannot imagine a parent in this room who would accept
their children being questioned without an adult. If any of my
colleagues are at peace with watching that little girl cry, you
know what? Miss me with your family values.
In the second video, the lie? That ICE statement, he
dragged an ICE officer. The footage, the fact? No one was
dragged. The lie? He drove at agents. The fact? He drove away
from agents. The lie? Used appropriate force. The fact? The
agent shot Silverio dead. The lie? Silverio had a history of
reckless driving. Are the cameras not on? The camera should be
on. I mean, I know we are filming. The fact is, he had just one
moving violation in May 2023. A traffic violation should never
amount to a death sentence. We need a full and thorough
investigation into what happened.
One moment. Is the public seeing this, Chairman? Chairman,
is the public seeing this? Are the cameras on? OK. If you can
go ahead and return my time. I think I was at about 30 seconds
when I asked about the camera. I will wait. If it is OK,
Chairman, I'll finish my 30 seconds in here.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentlelady will hurry.
Mrs. Ramirez. I want you to look at that face. Silverio was
shot. He was the father with full custody of these 2 children.
He was shot after he was followed dropping off his child at
daycare. We need a full, thorough investigation and every
single death and separation, every orphan created is Kristi
Noem's responsibility. It is why, Mr. Chair, pursuant to clause
2(k)(6) of rule XI(1), I move that the committee subpoena
Secretary Kristi Noem.
Chairman Brecheen. I now recognize Representative Strong
for his----
Mrs. Ramirez. Mr. Chairman, I----
Mr. Strong. Thank you, Chairman Brecheen, for holding these
hearings today. I have already seen how this----
Mrs. Ramirez. Mr. Chairman, I need a response to my request
of a subpoena. I didn't get a response.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentlelady will state her motion
again.
Mrs. Ramirez. Mr. Chair, pursuant to clause 2(k)(6) of rule
XI, I move that the committee subpoena Secretary Kristi Noem.
Chairman Brecheen. All right. The committee will stand in
recess.
[Recess.]
Chairman Brecheen. All right. The committee will be in
order resuming.
The gentlelady had a motion on the table.
Mr. Strong. Mr. Chairman, motion to table.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman has now indicated his
desire to table that motion.
Ms. Greene. I second.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentlelady has seconded.
All those in favor of tabling the motion, signify by saying
aye.
All opposed?
The ayes have it.
Mrs. Ramirez. Mr. Chairman, I request a recorded vote.
Chairman Brecheen. A recorded vote is requested. The Clerk
will call the roll.
The Clerk. Ms. Greene.
Ms. Greene. Aye.
The Clerk. Ms. Greene votes aye.
Mr. Strong.
Mr. Strong. Aye.
The Clerk. Mr. Strong votes aye.
Mr. Ogles.
Mr. Ogles. Aye.
The Clerk. Mr. Ogles votes aye.
Mr. Knott.
Mr. Knott. Aye.
The Clerk. Mr. Knott votes aye.
Mr. Garbarino.
[No response.]
The Clerk. Mr. Thanedar.
Mr. Thanedar. No.
The Clerk. Mr. Thanedar votes no.
Mrs. Ramirez.
Mrs. Ramirez. No.
The Clerk. Mrs. Ramirez votes no.
Mr. Carter.
[No response.]
Chairman Brecheen. How is the Chairman recorded?
The Clerk. The Chairman has not yet been recorded.
Chairman Brecheen. The Chairman votes aye.
The Clerk. Chairman Brecheen votes aye.
Mr. Carter. Mr. Chair, how am I recorded?
The Clerk. Mr. Carter is not recorded.
Mr. Carter. Mr. Carter votes no.
The Clerk. Mr. Carter votes no.
Mr. Green of Texas.
[No response.]
The Clerk. Ranking Member Thompson.
[No response.]
Chairman Brecheen. Any other Members not voted?
The Clerk will report.
The Clerk. Mr. Chairman, on that vote, there were 5 ayes
and 3 noes.
Chairman Brecheen. The ayes have it. The motion to table is
adopted.
All right. We are back on the agenda. I now recognize the
gentleman from Alabama for his 5 minutes of questioning.
Mr. Strong. Thank you, Chairman Brecheen, for holding this
hearing today.
We have already seen how the CCP took advantage of the
open-border policies of the previous administration to provide
precursors to fentanyl that have wreaked havoc all over this
Nation and all over the world in an effort to kill a generation
of Americans, not Republicans, not Democrats, but Americans.
The Mexican cartel cannot make fentanyl without the precursor
from China. These illegal marijuana farms are another example
of how brazen the CCP will be. Earlier this week, we talked
about how foreign adversaries see U.S. agriculture not only as
an economic target, but also a homeland security vulnerability.
Mr. Larkin, how significant is land acquisition to the
broader strategy of Chinese criminal groups operating in
America?
Mr. Larkin. It's helpful to them in 2 very different ways.
First, it allows them to use the property to grow illicit
drugs, to process them, and then use that site as a
distribution point. But it's also possible to do that in places
that would allow them to try to use that area for spying on
nearby facilities. For example, if you had an indoor rather
than an outdoor grow, you could not only use that as a basis
for developing marijuana that you can then ship elsewhere in
the State or across the Nation, you can also use that as a
place perhaps for spying on nearby Americans or American bases
or other sensitive targets. So it's a very dangerous sort of
circumstance we have.
Mr. Strong. I think you are exactly right. You start
thinking about it, I asked the State Department, how many acres
does China own or lease in America sometime back, might have
been a year or 2. I remember they said, we will get back with
you. Then all of a sudden we found out 380,000 acres are either
owned or leased by China of American soil.
Then we peeled the onion back a little further. What did it
say? We found out that where is this property located? It is
around our largest military installations in America. What is
unbelievable, we actually got a bipartisan bill, had Democrats
that crossed over because they know that this is a threat to
America.
When your agents do uncover these foreign back-grow
operations, what obstacles do you face in proving the criminal
ties and actually shutting them down?
Mr. Larkin. Is that still to me?
Mr. Strong. Yes, sir.
Mr. Larkin. The problem is Federal law doesn't require in
detail identification of all the different organizations,
entities, companies, or people that have an interest in
particular property. You can obscure it in that way. One way
this Congress could address this problem is by making clear
that you have to identify any and all foreign nationals,
particularly Chinese foreign nationals, who are potentially
associated with the PRC or the CCP as being real parties of
interest in either acquisitions of property by purchase or by
leasing. So that you can then with the onus on the people who
are the property owners as well as the real estate people to
make them help the Federal Government identify when the PRC and
the CCP is involved.
Mr. Thanedar. Thank you, Mr. Larkin.
Our national security strategy says China is the only
country with both the intent and the ability to reshape the
international order. It also calls China the Pentagon's top
challenge. While our military has been focused on China for
some time, do you think other departments like DHS need to
increase their focus on China's influence here at home?
Mr. Larkin. I do. I think one of the problems is the
American public doesn't understand the role that China plays in
the illicit drug trafficking and other activities that are
damaging to the Nation.
Mr. Strong. Thank you.
Mr. Urben, you have spent years investigating transnational
money-laundering networks. How significant a threat are Chinese
networks to our financial system compared to other global
actors?
Mr. Urben. Chinese money launderers, their networks over
the last 7 years, they've become the dominant money launderers
for transnational organized crime around the world. They are
the primary launderers for the Mexican drug cartels. For
example, when they became the dominant money launderers 2017,
2018, or 2019, they increased the net profits of the Mexican
cartels, the designated terrorist organizations, by our
estimation of 3 to 5 percent of their bottom line.
The way to attack those networks is with high-level
prosecutions against command and control. FinCEN several weeks
ago came out with additional guidance on compliance, AML, red
flag, in terms of Chinese money laundering within the United
States. We need to attack it with significant authorities and
funding.
Mr. Strong. If you could recommend one Federal action that
would immediately disrupt Chinese TCO operations in the United
States, what would that be and why?
Chairman Brecheen. Quickly.
Mr. Urben. Proper funding and authority and mandate for the
Federal Government through a task force to go after those
networks aggressively in the next year with racketeering-type
charges.
Mr. Strong. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman yields.
I now recognize Representative Carter for his 5 minutes of
question.
Mr. Carter. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you to our
witnesses for being here.
For decades, the Federal Government's decision to
criminalize marijuana has been nothing short of disastrous for
our communities, for our economy, and for justice in America.
The failed war against cannabis has especially devastated Black
and Brown communities. Arrest and incarceration rates for
marijuana offenses have been wildly disproportionate, with
people of color far more likely to be targeted despite using
marijuana at similar rates as white Americans. These policies
have fueled mass incarceration, separating families, stripping
people of opportunities, and saddling them with criminal
records that create life-long barriers to housing, education,
and employment. This has entrenched cycles of poverty and
inequality, all in the name of a policy that the American
people increasingly reject.
Beyond the human costs, prohibition has created a lucrative
illicit market. By outlawing marijuana, rather than regulating
it, the Federal Government allowed billions of dollars to flow
through the underground economy. That money could have gone
toward tax revenue, community investments, and public health,
but instead it has enriched criminal enterprise and fueled
violence.
Today, with most Americans supporting legalization, it is
past time that we acknowledge the truth: marijuana prohibition
has failed. The regulated cannabis industry is not the same as
what we were discussing today. The state of legal cannabis
industry employs over 425,000 people and operate in 40 States,
including my home State of Louisiana. State-regulated cannabis
programs require rigorous product testing for contaminants,
pesticides and alterants, and potency, sometimes entirely
absent from the illicit marketplace.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to enter into the record this
letter from the United States Cannabis Roundtable, the advocacy
organization for the regulated State-licensed cannabis
industry. This letter includes more details about how
legalization can combat foreign criminal cartels.
Chairman Brecheen. Without objection, so ordered.
Letter From the US Cannabis Roundtable
September 18, 2025.
The Honorable Josh Brecheen,
Homeland Security Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations,
and Accountability, 310 Cannon House Office Building,
Washington, DC 20510.
The Honorable Shri Thanedar,
Homeland Security Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations,
and Accountability, 310 Cannon House Office Building,
Washington, DC 20510.
Re: Statement for the Record on the Subcommittee on Oversight,
Investigations, and Accountability will hold a hearing titled,
``Invasion of the Homeland: How China is Using Illegal Marijuana to
Build a Criminal Network Across America.
Dear Chairman Brecheen and Ranking Member Thanedar: The United
States Cannabis Roundtable (``USCR'') appreciates the opportunity to
submit this statement for the record for the hearing entitled
``Invasion of the Homeland: How China is Using Illegal Marijuana to
Build a Criminal Network Across America.'' USCR is the voice of
America's regulated and State-licensed cannabis industry. Our members
include the nation's leading cannabis operators and ancillary
businesses and operate in all 40 States where cannabis is legal for
medical use, and the 24 States where cannabis is legal for adults over
the age of 21 without medical supervision. USCR strongly supports
efforts to combat the illicit cultivation of and diversion of
marijuana, and we are grateful to the committee for holding a hearing
on this important issue.
Over the past several years, we have seen that foreign criminal
enterprises have infiltrated States like California, Maine and
Oklahoma,\1\ diverting products to where cannabis remains illegal and
subverting strict State regulations on public health and safety.
According to the DEA's 2025 National Drug Threat Assessment, Chinese
and Mexican transnational criminal organizations are associated with
violence, have committed serious immigration and labor violations and
have engaged in human-trafficking in addition to failing to comply with
State regulations.\2\ There is no doubt that additional enforcement is
needed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/immigration/border-
coverage/chinese-mexican-crime-rinqs-marijuana/.
\2\ https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2025_05/
2025%20National%20Drug%20Threat- %20Assessment_Web%205-12-2025.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The State-licensed cannabis industry takes regulation, product
track and trace, age-gating and public safety seriously, and our
members follow State laws and work well with our regulators to provide
medical and adult-use products safely within the framework of State-
regulated programs.
Our industry employs 425,000 full-time equivalent individuals and
has paid over $24.7 billion dollars in State taxes.\3\ \4\ Because of
strict age-gating and our adherence to State marketing restrictions,
States that have legalized cannabis have actually seen a decrease in
adolescent use.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ https://www.nsc.org/cannabis-
regulations?srsltid=AfmBOopbc5LiBKBHiRcrW4-Yh8Gik-
GYGP2pNss00sZLTCIJtYhRd0Y2.
\4\ https://www.forbes.com/sites/javierhasse/2025/06/22/legal-weed-
is-working-data-suggests-24-7-billion-in-taxes-teen-use-down-in-most-
states/#.
\5\ https://www.mpp.org/issues/legalization/adult-use-legalization-
corresponds-with-drop-in-teen-marijuana-use.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In each State that our member companies operate, strict regulations
dictate permissible conduct for cannabis businesses. This includes the
seed to sale tracking, which creates a detailed record of the regulated
cannabis supply chain,\6\ age-gating and ID checks, plain package that
does not appeal to children, and product testing to ensure that
cannabis products are free from contaminants, mold, pesticides, and
other adulterants that could be harmful to consumer health and
safety.\7\ Of course, cartels and criminal organizations by their very
nature adhere to none of these safeguards, and they undermine State-
legal markets, and State tax revenue, while selling dangerous,
oftentimes tainted products.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ https://reason.org/commentary/batch-trackinq-the-next-wave-of-
marijuana-tracking-systems/.
\7\ https://www.nsc.org/cannabis-
regulations?srsltid=AfmBOopbc5LiBKBHiRcrW4-Yh8Gik-
GYGP2pNss00sZLTCIJtYhRd0Y2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Currently, the Trump administration is considering reclassifying
cannabis from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug. USCR strongly
supports this decision as it will further help combat against the
influence of cartels and criminal enterprises. Rescheduling cannabis
could reduce cartel revenue by $1 to $2 billion dollars annually.\8\
Rescheduling cannabis also creates greater financial transparency, and
allows for better prioritization of Federal enforcement dollars.
Rescheduling, however, would not hinder law enforcement's ability to
prosecute illegal actors, nor does it change the legal status of State-
licensed businesses.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ https://www.rand.org/pubs/occasional_papers/OP325.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
During President Trump's first term, he recognized the role the
illicit market plays in fulfilling demand for substances by saying,
``If you don't give it to them, it's going to come here illegally.''\9\
Since States have begun to legalize cannabis, seizures of the plant at
our Nation's Southern Border have greatly decreased. Border Patrol
confiscated 78 percent less cannabis in 2018 than they did in 2013
largely because of wider availability of cannabis in the U.S. from
legal sources.\10\ In 2019, former Mexican President Vincente Fox
acknowledged that the best way to combat the presence of cartels in
Mexico was to legalize cannabis.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/
remarks-president-trump-listening-session-youth-vaping-electronic-
cigarette-epidemic.
\10\ https://www.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/pa-860-
revised.pdf.
\11\ https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/22/vicente-fox-legalizing-drugs-
is-the-way-to-combat-cartels.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you again for organizing this hearing, and USCR stands ready
to be a cooperative partner in the effort to eradicate illicit cannabis
cultivation across the country. Please do not hesitate to reach out
with any questions you may have via our website at www.uscr.org.
Sincerely,
The United States Cannabis Roundtable.
Mr. Carter. The real choice isn't cannabis or no cannabis?
It is whether we let foreign criminal networks run the show or
rather we empower regulated American businesses that test,
track, and play by the rules. If we want to dismantle foreign
criminal networks and protect American communities, then we
need to strengthen, not weaken, regulated markets. That means
financial transparency, clear rules, and a Federal framework
that allows law enforcement to focus on fentanyl and other real
threats to our community.
Mr. Larkin, in a recent report from the Heritage
Foundation, you have recommended against rescheduling cannabis,
but even President Trump has expressed support for
rescheduling. Like President Trump, I believe we should end
endless arrests for cannabis conduct and focus on the real bad
guys, those who are pushing fentanyl and other deadly forms of
drugs. Why do you oppose President Trump's support for
rescheduling, especially since that means we can both recognize
medical uses and better-aligned law enforcement priorities?
Mr. Larkin. It would be a mistake legally, medically, and
from a policy perspective to reschedule cannabis from 1 to 3.
It would also be a mistake, even more so, to legalize it. I
wrote in an article in the Journal of the American Medical
Association Psychiatry multiple reasons why legally, medically,
and policy-wise, the rescheduling would be a mistake.
Mr. Carter. Mr. Larkin, have you expressed----
Mr. Larkin. I can give you one in particular.
Mr. Carter. Just a second. Have you expressed your concern
with the Trump administration?
Mr. Larkin. I published it in the Journal of the American
Medical Association. That's the way think tanks do things. I
haven't talked to anybody in the Trump administration. But I
can tell you one thing that is absolutely true. For 80-plus
years, the United States has trusted the Food and Drug
Administration with the responsibility to decide what is a drug
and what whether it's safe and effective.
Mr. Carter. I am going to reclaim my time because I only
got 25 seconds. You argue in your testimony that State
legalization has not eliminated the illicit black market. But
isn't it true that we have legalized cannabis in most of our
States? It remains illegal at the Federal level, which is why,
despite paying millions of dollars in taxpayer dollars,
licensed operators are often shut out of traditional banking
services and are forced to operate in cash. When a legitimate
operator is shut out of banking, it makes it harder for law
enforcement to trace transactions, determine who is compliant
and who is not. Wouldn't law enforcement and public safety be
better served by a Federally-regulated system to track the flow
of marijuana businesses' processing and distribution, thus
making it clear who the real operators are versus the Chinese,
who are inundating our communities with marijuana that may, in
fact, be tainted?
Mr. Larkin. No. The Chinese will also take advantage of any
legally sellable cannabis product. They make money not only
from illicit sales, but from lawful sales. They actually try to
focus on States that have medical or recreational programs so
that they can have lawful sales, big outdoor grows and the
like. Ask my colleague from Oklahoma.
Mr. Carter. The Chairman has been very generous. My time is
up, but I will ask you a final question as I part. Is it your
assertion that all marijuana should be illegal?
Chairman Brecheen. Hurry, please.
Mr. Carter. Is it your assertion that all cannabis should
be illegal, medicinal, and/or recreational?
Mr. Larkin. Yes, because the Food and Drug Administration--
--
Mr. Carter. Just yes or no.
Mr. Larkin. No, the Food and Drug Administration----
Mr. Carter. No, I reclaim my time, sir.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman's time has expired.
I now recognize Representative Ogles for his 5 minutes of
questioning.
Mr. Ogles. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I ask unanimous consent
to submit for the record Resolution Number 25109 from Siskiyou
County, California Board of Supervisors, requesting that
Governor Newsom of California proclaim a state of emergency
regarding illegal pesticides and illicit cannabis operations.
Chairman Brecheen. So ordered.
Mr. Ogles. Now, I want to be clear, the CCP is the
existential threat to the United States of America. CCP has set
up operations to leverage cannabis operations, both illegal
and, as you say, Mr. Larkin, legal operations in this country.
They work hand-in-hand with the cartels in Mexico to undermine
this country. So what is, in fact, a threat to the United
States is not Homeland Security, but it is China and the
Mexican cartels.
Unfortunately, instead of having a hearing on the CCP and
illicit activities in our country, some of my colleagues on the
other side of the aisle are more interested in protecting their
suppliers for their personal use than they are of fulfilling
their duty and protecting this country. I for one have had
enough of this nonsense.
We need to recognize the truth that the CCP is setting up
operations in this country. They want to destroy this country.
They want to see us on bended knee. I say hell no. So whether
it is 1, 3 on the schedule, whether it is legal or illegal, we
have to recognize the fact that the CCP is within our borders,
they are buying our farmland, and they are growing whatever
they can grow that they can make money off of. My colleagues
need to wake up and have an honest conversation about those
facts instead of grandstanding and, again, protecting their own
suppliers.
Mr. Urben, are Chinese TCOs laundering money in connection
to these illicit marijuana grow operations? To what extent are
they relying on preexisting China money-laundering networks in
the United States?
Mr. Urben. So the preexisting Chinese money-laundering
networks, those networks funded this substantial increase in
Chinese organized crime cultivation marijuana operations.
They're the ones that funded it and stood this up on a massive
basis. For example, I never focused on marijuana trafficking
during my career in DEA prior to this. What got my attention is
when Chinese money launderers took over money laundering for
the Mexican cartels in approximately 2018.
As we stood up this intelligence-gathering effort to
understand Chinese organized crime, we were shocked at the
marijuana grows that were in Northern California, exploiting
the land, exploiting our money--our banking laws, our mortgage
laws, taking water, taking electricity, the theft of it was
just unbelievable. So we recognized that not only do we have to
attack the Chinese money-laundering network, but we also had an
opportunity, right, and a need to attack the Chinese
cultivation grows that were happening throughout the United
States: Colorado, Oklahoma, California, Maine, and elsewhere.
The Chinese money launderers are the ones that funded this and
set this up. That's why you saw so much money and the scale
happen so quickly.
Mr. Ogles. Mr. Urben, just a few weeks ago, the Department
of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, FinCEN, I
am on Financial Services with which regulates that
organization, highlighted the role of Chinese money-laundering
networks in partnering with the Mexican drug cartels to launder
drug profits. How does the earned money from illegal marijuana
trafficking facilitate their money-laundering activities? Quite
frankly, when you look at the supply chain that they are
setting up, what other illicit goods may also be, such as human
trafficking, are part of that supply chain?
Mr. Urben. So one component of the organized crime revenue
feeds the other. So, for example, the money launderers and the
ability to purchase land and goods throughout the United States
for cultivation assist the money launderers, the human
trafficking component.
Getting back to the national security component to this,
all of these revenue streams that is benefiting Chinese
organized crime promotes and provides access points throughout
our U.S. Government, promotes access to different places that
they can corrupt, financial institutions that they can
undermine.
Mr. Ogles. FinCEN recently warned the Chinese money-
laundering networks pushed over 300 billion through U.S.
financial institutions in just 5 years. How much of that volume
do you believe is linked directly or indirectly to illicit
marijuana operations?
Mr. Urben. The majority or the significant component to
that was the proceeds of Mexican cartel drug trafficking. A
significant material component to that, I'm not going to put a
percentage on it, but you're talking billions of dollars, was
the illicit marijuana trade. It essentially put on steroids
Chinese organized crime within the United States, the money
they made off marijuana cultivation.
Mr. Ogles. I want to thank the witnesses. I apologize, I
didn't have questions for you, and I thank you to the Chairman.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman yields.
I now recognize Representative Knott for his 5 minutes of
questioning.
Mr. Knott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Urben, I want to talk to you quickly about some of the
misconceptions out there, but criminal organizations, the best
ones, are the hardest to catch. They have a proficiency of
layering in camouflage, making it very difficult to apprehend,
to investigate. In my time with law enforcement, there is some
easy pickings. The guys that are walking around the sidewalk
with an AK-47, that is easy. But it is the folks who are moving
the currency, who are masking illegal with legal activities, so
on, and so forth.
I want you to talk to us a little bit about how the Chinese
criminals have successfully hidden in polite society. Because
when I investigated marijuana cultivation that was illegal,
they had a very intricate network of legal front businesses
that enabled them to move millions of dollars that looked
legitimate. But when you started to peel the onion back, it was
a pretty harrowing viewpoint. So talk to us about how they are
successful in betting in polite society.
Mr. Urben. So they become so successful as to exactly what
you said because they're being controlled by the top echelon of
Chinese organized crime, some of the most sophisticated
operators in the world. They're very sophisticated and
disciplined in the sense that they engage in what we would view
as low-risk criminal activities. the money laundering. The
violent component to what Mr. Anderson stated, that's only more
recently. They try to stay away from violence or what would,
you know, have Federal prosecutors become interested in
prosecuting them, hence marijuana trafficking, money
laundering, human smuggling. They also rely on this network in
the Chinese underground banking system that's been around for
years. Last, we touched upon on this, it's very difficult to
recruit confidential sources to engage these networks and
wiretap these networks on WeChat is impossible.
Mr. Knott. Yep. In terms of the State structures, the State
legalities, we were promised, if you legalize it, you will see
less illegal marijuana. If you legalize it, there won't be
nearly as many incidents with toxicities and so forth. In my
experience prosecuting these cases, they used a sloppy
legalization effort to almost balloon the amount of marijuana
they were able to traffic. It was illegal in many instances,
but the sloppy legal structures has brought about a greater
problem in many respects.
Mr. Urben. So we don't have the regulatory component to
this in place that would negate subsidizing or allowing
organized crime on a national basis to exploit the marijuana
market.
Mr. Knott. In your--one of the things that is often
misstated, it is framed as though you have a marijuana dealer
and then every other type of criminal. In my experience,
organized crime touches the full spectrum when they get to a
certain level: methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl. Marijuana is
just one component of it. So to splice it out is often an
inaccurate assumption. Is that your experience?
Mr. Urben. Absolutely.
Mr. Knott. Mr. Larkin, briefly, you mentioned, I will give
you a chance to answer the question that Mr. Carter asked,
would it be wise, yes or no, to legalize marijuana in the
country, in your opinion?
Mr. Larkin. No, it would not.
Mr. Knott. Why?
Mr. Larkin. It is a problematic drug when you use it
heavily or on a long-term basis. What I was going to say in
response to the answer is we have not only the Controlled
Substances Act at work here, we also have the Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act. For 80 years we've trusted the FDA with deciding
what is a drug and whether it is safe, effective, and uniformly
made. The FDA could not say the cannabis plant is safe,
effective, and uniformly made because it's not.
Mr. Knott. Well, one of the mistruths that proponents say
is that there really isn't any problematic effects to
marijuana. It was interesting because when I was prosecuting
organized crime, I only had a few cases, but they were really
big cases in terms of quantity, in terms of sophistication,
dealing with marijuana, but they targeted young people. Please
describe the effects that young people suffer when they are
exposed to high levels of marijuana on a continued basis.
Mr. Larkin. The juvenile brain is in a labile state,
particularly in men. It doesn't come fully formed until early
in the 20's. The problem is the THC content of cannabis today
is not what it was back in the days of Woodstock. Back then it
was 3 to 6 percent THC. Now in the plants it can be up to 40
percent and in processed forms it can be 90 percent.
Mr. Knott. Has there been a successful State system that
controls the supply of marijuana to deliver only safe product
to the consumer?
Mr. Larkin. Not to my knowledge. The problem is there is
too great an amount of disuniformity in the product that's
being sold. A few years ago, Nora Volkow, the director of the
National Institute on Drug Abuse, said, we don't have in place
the mechanisms to make sure that what is being sold lacks the
pesticides that we know are coming from China and that are
creating problems and will create even bigger problems 10 to 20
years down the road when we start seeing spikes in areas where
there is a greater incidence of cancer because of it.
Well, thank you witnesses for your testimony. I am sorry I
am out of time. Mr. Anderson, I had a lot of questions for you
lined up, but maybe we will get a second round if we are
fortunate. If not, I hope to have you back.
Mr. Chairman, I do have a UC request. I have got an example
here. It is a Department of Justice press release detailing 7
Chinese nationals and their roles in money laundering millions
of dollars and smuggling kilograms of illegal marijuana.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentlemen asked it be put in the
record. Without objection----
Mr. Knott. Thank you.
Chairman Brecheen [continuing]. So ordered. The gentleman
yields.
[The information follows:]
Press Release, U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts
Tuesday, July 8, 2025
seven chinese nationals charged for alleged roles in multi-million-
dollar money laundering, alien smuggling and drug trafficking
enterprise
Defendants allegedly smuggled Chinese nationals into the United States
to work at grow houses in suburban neighborhoods, cultivating
and distributing kilogram-sized quantities of marijuana
BOSTON.--Seven Chinese nationals were charged today in connection
with a multi-million-dollar conspiracy to cultivate and distribute
marijuana across the Northeast that used interconnected grow houses
concealed inside single-family properties in Massachusetts and Maine.
It is alleged that Chinese nationals were smuggled into the United
States to work in these grow houses without access to their passports
until they repaid their smuggling debts.
The following individuals have been indicted on one count each of
conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to
distribute marijuana, as well as additional charges listed
respectively:
1. Jianxiong Chen, 39, of Braintree, Mass. also indicted on one
count of money laundering conspiracy, 11 counts of money
laundering and one count of bringing aliens into the United
States;
2. Yuxiong Wu, 36, of Weymouth, Mass. also indicted on one count of
money laundering conspiracy and four counts of money
laundering;
3. Dinghui Li, 38, of Braintree, Mass. also indicted on one count
of money laundering conspiracy and two counts of money
laundering;
4. Dechao Ma, 35, of Braintree, Mass. also indicted on one count of
money laundering conspiracy and two counts of money laundering;
5. Peng Lian Zhu, 35, of Melrose, Mass. also indicted on one count
of money laundering conspiracy;
6. Hongbin Wu, 35, of Quincy, Mass.; and
7. Yanrong Zhu, 47, of Greenfield, Mass. and Brooklyn, N.Y.
Six defendants were arrested this morning. Yanrong Zhu remains a
fugitive.
``This case pulls back the curtain on a sprawling criminal enterprise
that exploited our immigration system and our communities for personal
gain. These defendants allegedly turned quiet homes across the
Northeast into hubs for a criminal enterprise--building a multi-
million-dollar black-market operation off the backs of an illegal
workforce and using our neighborhoods as cover. That ends today,'' said
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley.
``Today, we arrested members of an alleged Chinese-run drug
trafficking organization who are accused of running a massive marijuana
cultivation and distribution scheme that has raked in millions and
contributed widely to the illegal drug trade here in the Northeast,''
said Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Boston
Division. ``Equally disturbing is that Jianxiong Chen--the accused
ringleader of this organization--is charged with paying to smuggle a
Chinese national across the Mexican border to work at his grow houses.
This takedown highlights the need for a sustained law enforcement
effort, across all levels, to shut down and thoroughly investigate the
organized criminal enterprises behind these unlicensed and illegal
operations.''
``The Massachusetts State Police share the resolve of our Federal
and local partners to support safer communities across the
Commonwealth,'' said Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble, Superintendent of the
Massachusetts State Police. ``Troopers assigned to our Special Services
Section used their training and skill in this Operation to respond to
the concerns of our neighbors, disrupt these illicit growing
activities, and improve the quality of life across Massachusetts. Each
of these properties can now return to their intended purpose as homes
which our communities desperately need.''
According to the charging documents, from in or about January 2020,
the defendants allegedly owned, operated or partnered with a network of
interconnected grow houses in Massachusetts and Maine to cultivate and
distribute kilogram-sized quantities of marijuana in bulk.
Specifically,the enterprise allegedly operated grow houses in
Braintree, Mass.; Melrose, Mass.; and Greenfield, Mass., among other
locations in Massachusetts, Maine and elsewhere. It is alleged that the
grow house operators maintained contact with each other through a list
of marijuana cultivators and distributors from or with ties to China in
the region called the ``East Coast Contact List.''
It is alleged that Chen controlled several grow houses in Maine as
well as a home in Braintree, Mass., which served as a base of
operations for the enterprise. Marijuana manufactured by the
interconnected grow house network, as well as bulk cash from dealers,
was allegedly delivered to and redistributed by Chen at this Braintree
residence. It is further alleged that co-conspirators concealed the
marijuana and cash they were delivering to Chen inside the engine
compartments of their vehicles. During a search of the home in October
2024, over $270,000 in cash was allegedly recovered from the house and
from a Porsche in the driveway, as well as several Chinese passports
and other identification documents inside a safe.
An alleged grow house located in Braintree, Mass., where Dechao Ma
resided. It is alleged that during an October 2024 search of the
residence, approximately 30 kilograms of marijuana and almost $30,000
in cash were seized.
Data extracted from Chen's cell phone allegedly revealed that he
helped smuggle Chinese nationals into the United States--putting the
aliens to work at one of the grow houses he controlled while keeping
possession of their passports until they repaid him for the cost
associated with smuggling them into the country.
It is alleged that profits from the marijuana sales, which totaled
in the millions of dollars, were used to purchase luxury homes,
automobiles, jewelry and other items in Massachusetts including to
expand the enterprise through the purchase of real estate.
Additional October 2024 searches of grow houses located in
Braintree and Melrose where Maand Zhu resided, respectively, allegedly
resulted in the seizure of over 109 kilograms of marijuana, nearly
$200,000 in cash and numerous luxury items including a gold Rolex watch
with a $65,000 price tag still on it.
It is further alleged that the enterprise conducted bulk cash
transactions with operators located in the Eastern District of New
York. According to court documents, in June 2023, Hongbin Wu and
Yanrong Zhu were stopped by law enforcement after leaving a grow house
in Greenfield, Mass., during which $36,900 in cash was seized from the
defendants.
The charge of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess
with intent to distribute marijuana provides for a sentence of up to 5
years in prison, at least 2 years of supervised release and a fine of
up to $250,000. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for
a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to 3 years of supervised
release and a fine of up to $500,000, or twice the amount involved,
whichever is greater. The charges of money laundering each provide for
a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to 3 years of supervised
release and a fine of up to $500,000, or twice the amount involved,
whichever is greater. The charge of bringing aliens into the United
States provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 3 years and up to
10 years in prison, 3 years of supervised release and a fine of up to
$250,000. Sentences are imposed by a Federal district court judge based
upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the
determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
U.S. Attorney Foley, FBI SAC Docks and MSP Superintendent Colonel
Noble made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by
the Drug Enforcement Administration; New York State Police; Maine State
Police; and the Braintree, Westchester County and New York Police
Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Pohl of the
Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide
initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of
Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total
elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and
protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the
Department's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and
Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations.
The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty
beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Updated July 9, 2025.
Chairman Brecheen. I now recognize Mr. Green for his 5
minutes of questioning.
Mr. Green. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thank the Ranking
Member as well.
The Chinese money laundering that is taking place, why is
it so difficult for us to understand how it is being done and
to prevent it from being done?
Mr. Urben. Thank you, sir. They came to dominate the
industry for several reasons. No. 1, in the past, there was
always a certain cost to money laundering. It was 7 to 10
percent certainly to get those funds back to the Mexican
cartel. The Chinese money launderers changed the game in that,
No. 1, they absorbed all the risk of laundering those funds;
No. 2, they did it for 1 to 2 percent; No. 3, the funds that
are collected, the bulk cash from sales of narcotics in this
country that they take ownership or custody of, they began to
sell to Chinese nationals that wanted to invest in the United
States. They do this globally with a trusted network with
what's called the Chinese underground banking system.
Last but certainly not least, they utilize the encrypted
app called WeChat, which is controlled and monitored in
mainland China that U.S. law enforcement cannot have any
judicial process, we can't wiretap it. So what it allows for is
that organized crime network globally to communicate with trust
and speed. No other organized crime group in the world has ever
had a communication system similar to this.
Mr. Green. Are they using cryptocurrency? Explain, please.
Mr. Urben. Yes. So certainly in the last 2 years, the
crypto component of the money-laundering cycle has taken on a
much more substantial role. As crypto is being used more and
more globally, it's actually taken on more of a role in the
money laundering process because the Mexican cartels would like
to receive those funds in crypto. So it's part of the process
now.
Mr. Green. How do you recommend we deal with this, given
that we now have these electronic transfers? It makes it rather
difficult to--I want to stop it. I am just trying to get a
sense from you as experts as to how we can do it.
Mr. Urben. So the networks that exist right here within the
United States, those Chinese money launderers on a daily basis
pick up that bulk cash. So when we were talking about earlier
of this interagency task force that was designed to go after
Chinese organized crime with severe penalties such as the
racketeering laws, it should be stood up and funded. That's the
first thing.
The second thing is in terms of what we saw last couple
weeks ago from FinCEN, that directive to the banking industry
to enhance compliance, red flag reporting on the money-
laundering transactions.
Last, WeChat itself needs to be impacted. It cannot be
utilized by Chinese money launderers on an on-going basis,
again, in this trusted network where they can communicate and
move money.
Mr. Green. The suspicious activity reports are not enough
for this large sum of money?
Mr. Urben. It's not enough in the sense that financial
institutions, crypto companies, wire emitters, need to enhance
and increase the suspicious activity reporting and their AML
compliance to focus on Chinese money-laundering networks.
Mr. Green. Well, let me just close with this. I am new to
this money laundering and I am trying to make sure that I get a
better understanding of it. I believe that my understanding of
what is happening in financial services can help me with what
is happening here in Homeland Security. Is there any piece of
legislation that you would call to my attention that might be
helpful? Is there anything that you would have us do in terms
of legislation?
Mr. Urben. Over the last 18 months, the FEND Off Act and
the HALT Act were good examples of successes in terms of legal
legislative process. What I would suggest is this interagency
task force that needs to be stood up nationally with the
mandate to go after Chinese organized crime, fully funded, data
scientists, Mandarin translators, everything that's needed on
that task force to attack the network.
The second part is the racketeering laws need to be imposed
on Chinese organized crime. There needs to be a legislative or
some sort of Executive branch solution with the Chinese
government when it comes to WeChat, so it's not utilized on a
global basis by Chinese organized crime. Again, through
legislative process that allows law enforcement to wiretap it
or some negotiated strategy with the Chinese government where
they negate the ability of WeChat to be utilized.
Mr. Green. Yes, sir. If the Chair would permit.
Chairman Brecheen. Go ahead.
Mr. Larkin. It's also worth looking into the problem that
people are obscuring, as your colleague said, through a lot of
different layers of dummy corporations, who the real parties
and interests are. We need to start requiring that the real
parties and interests be identified before whenever they are
part of Chinese organized crime or a foreign government that is
adverse to our interests. Because the easier you make it for
law enforcement to try to see who really is owning this
property and, therefore, what's going on at it, the easier it
might be for law enforcement to take steps to stop the money
laundering and the ultimate activity itself.
Mr. Green. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman yields.
If our panel of experts would be willing, you know, given
the inability to dive a little deeper, I wish we had gotten to
in the middle of this, there is going to be a few of us that
stick around and ask a few more questions. If the panel, if you
have got time to expedite this, for your sake and ours, I am
going to ask the committee Members limit their time to 3
minutes.
So with that, I am going to go out of order here. I am
going to let Representative Ogles go first. I will follow
through with anybody on the Democrat side and then--Democratic
side. If, Mr. Knott, you want to follow him and then I will go
last and I will watch my time because I have got a time
constraint.
All right. So with that said, Representative Ogles, you are
recognized for 3 minutes.
Mr. Ogles. Again, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and to the
witnesses.
Director Anderson, it seems like these illegal grow
operations are run by a core criminal element that oversee low-
level workers who are often victims of trafficking. Is this an
accurate description based on your experience?
Mr. Anderson. Yes, sir, you absolutely hit the nail on the
head, it is. You have upper management, very well-organized
transnational criminal organizations. But with that comes every
other crime with it, which is the human trafficking, the labor
trafficking, the sex trafficking, and the violent crime and
every other crime that follows underneath it.
Mr. Ogles. Now, is there, from your experience, a
difference that you have seen between the immigration status of
the low-level workers versus the higher-level criminals that
are actually operating these networks?
Mr. Anderson. Well, there's a definite difference between
the two. So your high-level transnational criminal
organization, your person who's running operations, they look
different, they dress different, they drive different vehicles.
Then your migrant worker comes in, you know, once again, they
look different, they dress different, they--how they dress, how
they speak to, to even how they address you, meaning me in law
enforcement, is totally different. But there is a big
significant difference between the two. Yes, sir.
Mr. Ogles. So is it fair to say when you look at the
complexity of this problem, that the high-level organizers, the
traffickers, the low-level individuals that they are using in
these illicit activities, they are literally throwaways; that
if they get caught, they get incarcerated, they will just
replace them with someone else?
Mr. Anderson. Those are basically what we call victims.
True.
Mr. Ogles. Mr. Larkin, to what extent is the CCP tied to
these Chinese TCOs operating in the United States? Do you
believe that the CCP is aware of the Chinese nationals who
leave China to establish criminal operations in the United
States?
Mr. Larkin. China is the most heavily surveilled nation in
the world. It's difficult to believe that the CCP is unaware of
people who are engaged in criminal activities in other nations,
like what's happening here with Chinese organized crime. Keep
in mind, you don't have to prove an affirmative agreement
between them. All you have to do is show through circumstantial
evidence that the CCP is aware of and is helping out the
organized crime measures.
If you look at the statements the three of us have
submitted, you'll see there are various types of evidence that
points to knowledge by the CCP and the PRC of what is going on
in Chinese organized crime. That's the sort of evidence that
the Supreme Court has said would be sufficient to justify a
guilty verdict for conspiracy to engage in this activity.
Mr. Ogles. Well, thank you to the witnesses. Thank you to
the Chairman. I yield back.
Chairman Brecheen. The gentleman yields.
I now recognize Representative Thanedar for 3 minutes for
his questions.
Mr. Thanedar. Thank you, Chairman.
Illegal marijuana grows are a threat. Marijuana grown
illegally can be saturated with chemicals that are dangerous to
humans. The money generated by selling illegal marijuana on the
black market funds criminal organizations and the illegal grows
bring all sorts of crime and destruction into American
communities. The Federal Government needs a coordinated
strategy to do all it can to shut down these illegal marijuana
grows. I think we can all agree on that.
Nevertheless, the Trump administration is eliminating the
Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, which is the
largest anti-crime task force in the country. For 40 years,
OCDETF has helped disrupt and dismantle criminal networks with
a drug-centric focus until Donald Trump. First Trump wrongly
expanded OCDETF's mission to focus on illegal immigration. Now
President Trump has a budget request that eliminates OCDETF
entirely.
Mr. Urben, in your experience at the DEA, how would you
describe the role of OCDETF plays in combating illegal drug
trafficking? Do you think that eliminating OCDETF will help
combat illegal marijuana cultivation, particularly by the
Chinese criminal organizations?
Mr. Urben. So during my career, I called it ``OCDEF,'' So
I'll refer it as OCDEF, sorry. There was a tremendous benefit
for OCDETF. No. 1, it synchronized manpower and the agencies to
work together. It designated the targets, the top levels of
organized crime that we were going to target collectively, and
then it also funded that. So it was a mechanism to synchronize
Federal law enforcement. It was very successful. I would
suggest, A, you either utilize OCDETF or you bring the
equivalent and successes of OCDETF that are necessary to go
after Chinese organized crime, the Mexican cartels, et cetera.
Mr. Knott. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. Thanedar. Yes, sure.
Mr. Knott. What does that acronym stand for? Do you know?
Mr. Thanedar. Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.
Mr. Knott. Thank you, sir.
Mr. Thanedar. Chairman, I yield back.
Mr. Ogles [presiding]. Thank you.
Recognize the gentleman, Mr. Knott, for 3 minutes.
Mr. Knott. Mr. Anderson, I have got a question for you. In
terms of your experience in local law enforcement, what effect
over the last 20 years-plus of your career has international
criminal activity had on the local law enforcement community?
You, yep.
Mr. Anderson. I'm sorry. Well, the international crime has
had a huge impact on our local law enforcement community. So
understand almost every precursor used to manufacture
methamphetamine, fentanyl, or any other illicit manufactured
drug like that comes from China to the cartels to across the
rest of the United States----
Mr. Knott. Yes.
Mr. Anderson [continuing]. Which that's a fact in every
community across the United States.
Mr. Knott. Yes.
Mr. Anderson. But also with that is the underlying crime,
such as the homicides, the sex trafficking, all the other
crimes that come along--right along with it, which it affects
every community in the United States.
Mr. Knott. Right.
Mr. Anderson. So it affects absolutely everyone. No one's
immune from it. Oklahoma is a very rural State of 4 million
people and we're devastated by transnational criminal
organizations.
Mr. Knott. In terms of the open border of the last 4 years,
how did that affect organized crime in your local communities?
Mr. Anderson. So I understand, and I got to say this, first
off, I'm not a politician. I'm not even a political appointee.
Mr. Knott. I'm not asking. I was in law enforcement before
I ran here.
Mr. Anderson. But I have to say that because it's going to
sound like I am.
Mr. Knott. Nope, I'm asking you that--your perspective.
Mr. Anderson. I'm telling you, and I've seen it both ways--
--
Mr. Knott. Yep.
Mr. Anderson [continuing]. I've seen when we couldn't get
anything. I mean, we--as matter of fact, we were on a T3 and we
was purchasing kilos of methamphetamine. Trump closed the
border down during COVID, nothing.
Mr. Knott. Yes.
Mr. Anderson. I mean, it was 6 months.
Mr. Knott. Cocaine----
Mr. Anderson. Anything.
Mr. Knott [continuing]. And heroin----
Mr. Anderson. Anything.
Mr. Knott [continuing]. And crack, all of it. Yes.
Mr. Anderson. Then we leave, we change administrations,
we're flooded, we're inundated with controlled dangerous
substances. Once again, I'm not making a political statement.
I'm telling you what I've seen.
Mr. Knott. What effect does that have on law enforcement?
Can you successfully fight crime with an open border?
Mr. Anderson. With an open border?
Mr. Knott. Yes.
Mr. Anderson. No.
Mr. Knott. Yes.
Mr. Anderson. Absolutely not.
Mr. Knott. In regards to the task force model linking
Federal and State law enforcement, have you had any kind of
experiences with that in your career?
Mr. Anderson. I have. I'm actually a task force guy. I
operated a task force for many years. On that task force was
including Federal agents and local agents.
Mr. Knott. Yes.
Mr. Anderson. We still currently operate with our Federal
partners on task forces.
Mr. Knott. In terms of force multiplication, on the good
side of the ledger, in my opinion, there is no greater way than
task forcing Federal and local jurisdictions together. Do you
agree with that?
Mr. Anderson. I absolutely agree with it, and we do it
every day. Whenever I came into the bureau, 6 years ago, we
were down to approximately 50 agents. We're up to around 130
now. That's primarily because we TFO, task forcing.
Mr. Knott. Yep. I have long been an advocate, sir, that
every Federal law enforcement agency should utilize and grow
their task force program because international crime affects
every community large and small across the country. Isn't that
true?
Mr. Anderson. That is absolutely correct.
Mr. Knott. Well, Mr. Anderson, thank you. I am glad I got a
second round to ask you questions. To all the witnesses, please
come back and talk to us about this important topic.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Mr. Ogles. The gentleman yields.
We're concluding here. Last thoughts, we have 3 minutes, so
essentially a minute each. Mr. Urben, final thought.
Mr. Urben. We've demonstrated what the effect is on the
communities. We have the intelligence. I would ask that you
fully fund a task force to attack these networks.
This is not that hard. It's tough work. It's difficult.
It's challenging. But fund a task force and give them the
mandate to attack these networks with individuals like Mr.
Anderson, please.
Mr. Ogles. Mr. Larkin.
Mr. Larkin. In the short run, the most important thing to
do is educate the people in your communities about these
problems. I think when people think of drug problems, they
think of Mexico. They don't think of China. They have some idea
that China is involved in selling fentanyl precursors, but they
don't realize the full extent of the tentacles that China has
extended into the United States. The public needs to know this.
Holding this hearing is important, but it is also important
that you tell the people in your communities about what is
happening. Remember, the Chinese are playing the long game.
They can do this for decades, for centuries. They don't care.
But we can't do that. We have to act now.
Mr. Ogles. Mr. Anderson.
Mr. Anderson. I think it is imperative that we educate the
public on what's going on in the Nation, especially when it
comes to the CCP and the rest of the world, and the movement
that we know that we are seeing that is going on and
transpiring. When you're talking about the long game, they're
in the long game. They've been doing this for many, many years.
When you talk about what's going on with the money laundering
between--and the precursors, since we can go all the way back
to 2007, that's what we know for sure. Whenever the cartels
started reaching out to the people in China and making these
deals, that's when--that's how far back it's been. So we're
already into the long game.
One thing I would ask legislation to do and to seriously
look at, I do think we're better whenever we bring all of our
resources together and we combat a problem, because you're
talking about a really huge global network. We have to bring
our people together. We have to bring our experts together, and
we have to fight this within.
I would also ask that this legislation looks at the
Communication Act of 1996. If you look at, and you've been a
Federal prosecutor, you look at how we've dismantled criminal
organizations across the United States, we've done it through
that act. That act is outdated. The criminal element has
surpassed us. We can't do the cases like we used to because of
all these encrypted apps that are floating around on everyone's
phones. So I would ask that you look at that as well.
Thank you for your time. I really appreciate you inviting
us to be here today.
Mr. Ogles. It's clear from this hearing that the CCP is in
a coordinated attack against the United States of America.
Whether it is through their trafficking network, the cyber
attacks, or facilitation of the Mexican cartels, they have
declared an asymmetric war on this country, and it is time that
we fight back with all the tools and resources that we have at
our disposal.
I thank the witnesses for their valuable testimony and the
Members for their questions. The Members of the subcommittee
may have additional questions for the witnesses, and we ask the
witnesses to respond to these in writing. Pursuant to committee
rule VII(E), the hearing record will be open for 10 days.
Without objection, we are adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 12:12 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X I
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Supplemental Material Submitted by Donnie Anderson
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
______
Article--``Gangsters, Money and Murder: How Chinese Organized Crime Is
Dominating America's Illegal Marijuana Market''
[The article has been retained in committee files and is available
at https://www.propublica.org/article/chinese-organized-crime-us-
marijuana-market.]
______
Article--``A Diplomat's Visits to Oklahoma Highlight Contacts Between
Chinese Officials and Community Leaders Accused of Crimes''
[The article has been retained in committee files and is available
at https://www.propublica.org/article/oklahoma-marijuana-china-
diplomat-visits.]
______
Article--``A Marijuana Boom Led Her to Oklahoma. Then Anti-Drug Agents
Seized Her Money and Raided Her Home''
[The article has been retained in committee files and is available
at https://www.propublica.org/article/marijuana-oklahoma-chinese-
immigrant-arrests-asset-seizure-2.]
______
Article--``Inside Our Investigation of China's Influence Campaigns''
[The article has been retained in committee files and is available
at https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/25/insider/investigating-
china.html.]
______
Photos Submitted by Donnie Anderson
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Article Submitted by Donnie Anderson
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Oklahoma Court Records Submitted by Donnie Anderson
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
A P P E N D I X I I
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Statement of Alexander B. Gray, CEO, American Global Strategies,
Submitted by Chairman Josh Brecheen
Chairman Brecheen, Ranking Member Thanedar, and Members of the
committee, thank you for allowing me to submit remarks for the record
on a topic of such exceptional importance to American national and
economic security.
I have spent the majority of my professional career focused on
issues of national security and foreign policy, primarily at the
Federal level. Most recently, I served as deputy assistant to the
President and chief of staff of the White House National Security
Council (NSC) from 2019 to 2021. Earlier, I served as special assistant
to the President for the defense industrial base at the White House
National Economic Council (NEC) and as director for Oceania & Indo-
Pacific security at the NSC. I am also a fourth-generation Oklahoman,
who cares deeply about the safety of my home State.
During my tenure at the White House, I had a front-row seat to the
efforts the CCP is undertaking, in the United States and around the
world, to subvert governments and societies and seek to gain economic,
political, and military advantage. Unfortunately, in just the time
since I left public service in January 2021, the threat posed by the
CCP to the United States has only grown. The CCP threat is no longer
only a distant military and cyber threat in the Indo-Pacific but is now
one that involves substantial personal and economic risks to American
citizens, at home.
As Americans ponder their response to the CCP's predations, it is
essential to understand the reality that no company or entity in China
is truly private, in the sense that Americans would understand it.
Beijing exerts top-down control over all Chinese companies and
commercial enterprises, regardless of whether the State officially owns
a stake in the company or not. In fact, this is enshrined in China's
legal system. China has numerous national security laws that require
all businesses and individuals to use their resources to support the
CCP if called upon to do so in support of China's security apparatus
and strategic objectives. In essence, if a Chinese citizen or company
fails to assist the CCP, they are actually violating the law.
Given the implications of this top-down authoritarian business
environment, we must recognize that when it comes to Chinese-owned
businesses, all roads lead to Beijing. Recently, we have seen an uptick
in agricultural land purchases in the United States by Chinese-linked
entities. This represents a grave threat to rural communities and to
the whole country who depend on American agriculture. Already, hundreds
of thousands of acres of American farmland have been bought up by
Chinese entities, often through a maze of shell companies and LLCs. If
we even just take one step back from the immediate national security
risk, we can also see the immense risk to State economies and to
America's economic security if the land our food is grown and raised on
is controlled by a foreign adversary. Though restrictions on foreign
land purchases exist at the Federal level, they have proven incredibly
difficult to enforce, as shell companies and difficult-to-trace
entities continually pop up to aid in these transactions. Additional
measures are needed, including greater collaboration between the
Federal Government and State governments, to ensure that American
farmland stays in the hands of American farmers, protecting both our
national and economic security.
CCP leaders are constantly prodding to identify opportunities to
bring a potential conflict to the U.S. homeland. In 1999, two senior
Chinese colonels wrote ``Unrestricted Warfare,'' which took stock of
perceived American weaknesses in a potential conflict between China and
the United States. They described a new kind of conflict in which ``all
the boundaries lying between the two worlds of war and non-war, of
military and non-military, will be totally destroyed, and it also means
that many of the current principles of combat will be modified, and
even that the rules of war may need to be rewritten.'' They note the
vulnerability of the U.S. homeland, specifically to economic coercion
and even biological attacks and lay out a series of spheres in which
the United States has failed to focus sufficient attention. Twenty-five
years and voluminous examples later, the United States should take the
CCP at its word and understand that a potential conflict with China
would indeed be ``unrestricted'' and the U.S. homeland would not be
off-limits.
In wartime, CCP depredations facing the homeland could include
cyber attacks on critical infrastructure, producing significant damage
to civilian populations. These attacks could also include disruption of
the food supply facilitated by CCP control of key pieces of
agricultural land across the United States, and traditional sabotage
operations. With the Federal Government focused on a conventional
conflict in the Indo-Pacific of unprecedented scale and scope, States
and localities will be forced to address these challenges at home with
limited Federal resources. It is incumbent upon policy makers, in
Washington, including Congress, to begin the hard work of educating
their constituents and hardening their jurisdictions against the CCP's
unrestricted warfare.
We are currently giving our chief geopolitical adversary and
economic rival critical leverage over our country and its citizens. As
tensions rise so do the risks. If a war, or even a low-intensity
conflict were to break out between China and the United States in the
far-away seas and islands of the Pacific, very quickly, Americans would
realize this conflict is not so far away at all. Beijing would no doubt
use every available tool they can, including their ``private''
companies in the United States to harm our economy and our citizens. It
has become apparent that our country needs a national strategy and
response to sufficiently protect American citizens and keep our economy
secure.
______
Supplemental Material Submitted by Steven Robinson, Editor-in-Chief,
The Maine Wire; Director, ``High Crimes: How Chinese Mafia Took Over
Rural America''
Re: PRC-linked illicit cannabis and trafficking networks in Maine and
New England
Chairman Brecheen: Chinese human-trafficking and drug-trafficking
networks have exploited cannabis laws and lax enforcement in New
England to grow and distribute vast quantities of marijuana nationwide.
The foreign drug trafficking organizations have imposed heavy costs on
law-abiding Americans forced to live beside ruthless organized crime.
In Maine we have documented murder,\1\ human and sex trafficking,\2\
dangerous neurotoxic chemicals at grow sites,\3\ and fraud/financial
crimes tied to black-market Chinese drug gangs.\4\ We have also
identified clear, concrete connections between Chinese cartels
operating in Maine and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) United Front-
aligned associations--including at drug properties within walking
distance of a U.S. military facility.\5\ \6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Steve Robinson, ``Suspect Arrested in Connection with Homicide
Tied to Chinese Gang's Marijuana Grow in Turner,'' The Maine Wire,
January 7, 2025.
\2\ Edward Tomic, ``Numerous Chinese Massage Parlors in Maine, Some
Run by Illegal Aliens, Busted for Sex Trafficking,'' The Maine Wire,
April 18, 2025.
\3\ Steve Robinson, ``Illicit Chinese Toxins Discovered at Somerset
County Triad Cannabis Operation,'' The Maine Wire, March 4, 2025.
\4\ Steve Robinson, ``New York Men Strike Plea Deals Over Bank
Fraud Conspiracy Tied to Chinese Cannabis Cartels in Maine,'' The Maine
Wire, September 3, 2025.
\5\ Steve Robinson, ``Illicit Marijuana Grow Near U.S. Army Base in
Maine Tied to Chinese Communist Party's NYC Consulate,'' The Maine
Wire, May 15, 2024.
\6\ Philip Lenczycki, ``DCNF EXCLUSIVE: Web Of Illegal Marijuana
Grows Tied To Chinese Communist Party Front Group,'' The Maine Wire
(repub.), May 1, 2025.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
These conclusions arise from 2 years of reporting at
TheMaineWire.com and my documentary High Crimes: How Chinese Mafia Took
Over Rural America. Across Maine and New England we identified a
sprawling, inter-State network of illicit cultivation and trafficking
infrastructure. Subsequent county and Federal actions now corroborate 5
core truths: (1) these are interconnected networks, not isolated
houses; (2) the networks are run by Chinese drug organizations with
ties to PRC-aligned associations; (3) they rely on human trafficking
and sophisticated money laundering coordinated using WeChat and front
organizations; (4) most illicit cannabis grown in Maine is shipped out
of State into eastern U.S. markets exploiting the so-called ``Hemp
Loophole;'' and (5) the phenomenon is wrecking housing stock, poisoning
markets and consumers with illicit pesticides, undermining small
businesses that try to operate legally, and creating a culture of
lawlessness that is forcing Mainers to either go bankrupt or embrace
the same illegal behavior.\7\ \8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts, ``Seven
Chinese Nationals Charged for Alleged Roles in Multi-Million-Dollar
Money Laundering, Alien Smuggling and Drug Trafficking Enterprise,''
press release, July 9, 2025.
\8\ Steve Robinson, ``Maine Pot Czar Admits State Is Licensing
Foreign Criminal Orgs to Grow Cannabis, Says Hands Tied,'' The Maine
Wire, January 15, 2025.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Our investigation began when a leaked Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) assessment identified approximately 270 Maine properties
tied to Asian transnational criminal organizations, many along the I-95
corridor used for cash, narcotics, and the movement of illegal aliens
from China. That July 2023 memo drastically underestimated the foothold
Chinese organized crime has since established in Maine. Our
investigation mapped these properties and probed the common ownership,
financing, and operational links among them.\9\ Our investigation had
found more than 350 Maine properties connected to the Chinese drug
cartels, including residential and commercial facilities converted to
marijuana growing, boarding houses for illegal alien workers, cash
stash houses and seemingly legitimate business fronts. These include a
former church in Wynn, a former middle school in Mattawamkeag, a
doctor's office in Fayette, a shoe factory in Wilton, a sardine cannery
in Eastport, and hundreds of houses that no longer belong to middle-
class Maine families or business owners.
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\9\ Jennie Taer, ``EXCLUSIVE: Illegal Chinese Marijuana Grow
Operations Are Taking Over Blue State, Leaked Memo Says,'' Daily Caller
News Foundation, August 16, 2023; and Steve Robinson, ``Triad Weed: How
Chinese Marijuana Grows Took Over Rural Maine,'' The Maine Wire,
November 8, 2023.
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Operationally, the same electricians, lenders, straw owners, and
``helpers'' appear repeatedly at different sites; WeChat functions as
the nervous system for procurement, logistics, payments, and the
distribution of illicit fumigant chemicals; and restaurants, seafood
ventures, massage parlors, and other cash-intensive businesses serve as
fronts to commingle funds and provide camouflage.\10\ \11\ \12\ \13\
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\10\ Steve Robinson, ``The Triad's Electrician: Meet the 87-Year-
Old `Frontman' for Chinese Marijuana Grows in Maine,'' The Maine Wire,
April 16, 2024.
\11\ Steve Robinson, ``The Restaurateur: Bangor Business Owner
Linked to Illicit Marijuana Grows,'' The Maine Wire, May 16, 2024.
\12\ Steve Robinson, ``Welcomed to Maine by LePage, Eastport
Seafood Biz Devolved Into Illicit Marijuana Trafficking Operation with
Ties to Hong Kong,'' The Maine Wire, May 8, 2024.
\13\ Steve Robinson, ``Illegal Chinese Neurotoxins Are Coming to
Maine's Black-Market Cannabis Grows: Maine Threat Brief,'' The Maine
Wire, August 29, 2024 (on WeChat-based logistics and payments).
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The networks also exhibit demonstrable ties to PRC-aligned
organizations. At a Dexter, Maine, site less than a mile from a U.S.
Army Reserve facility, we found apparel linking the location to the
Sijiu Association of New York, an overseas-Chinese civic group
documented as working with the PRC consulate and United Front entities.
Subsequent reporting identified Sijiu officials--one a senior leader--
as among Chinese traffickers arrested in Maine.\5\ \6\
Human trafficking and money laundering are integral to the model.
In July 2025, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts
charged 7 Chinese nationals in a multi-million-dollar cultivation,
distribution, laundering, and alien-smuggling enterprise spanning
Massachusetts and Maine--alleging smuggled Chinese laborers whose
passports were withheld until smuggling debts were repaid, bulk cash
logistics, and laundering into real estate and luxury goods.\7\
According to the indictment, these ringleaders were reading our
reporting from the very first article we published exposing Chinese
organized crime in Maine. Parallel to labor trafficking, Maine police
have exposed sex- and labor-trafficking at Chinese-run massage parlors
in Rockland, Lewiston, Portland, and Ellsworth, including cases
involving illegal aliens, forced labor, recording equipment, cash
hoards, coercion, and deceptive recruitment via Chinese-language job
boards.\2\
Most illicit cannabis grown in Maine leaves the State. Maine Office
of Cannabis Policy (OCP) Director John Hudak told lawmakers that
individuals tied to these networks seek State medical licenses as
``Get-Out-of-Jail-Free'' cards to shield ongoing illegal operations--
``by and large, directing product out-of-State.''\8\ As with cannabis
cultivation in California and Oklahoma, the sheer volume alone is
enough to infer that the cannabis is being sold and consumed mostly
out-of-State, with evidence mounting in prohibition States that black-
market cannabis is being sold as ``hemp'' at tobacco shops and head
shops throughout the United States.
The social, cultural, and economic toll is acute. Chinese-
controlled conversions destroy housing stock: once purchased,
properties are removed from the market and frequently ruined by black
mold, neurotoxic chemicals, and heavy abuse. We documented a Maine
family who developed respiratory symptoms after touring a Monmouth
property used as a shipping node for Chinese-made pesticides; the
listing was quietly pulled after our reporting. Many converted
properties present serious risks of electrical fires, chemical
exposure, and carbon-monoxide or propane poisoning due to uninspected
equipment and bypassed meters.\14\ \15\ \16\
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\14\ Steve Robinson, ``Maine Family Sickened After Exposure to
Illicit Cannabis House Linked to Chinese-Made Toxins,'' The Maine Wire,
December 5, 2024.
\15\ Steve Robinson, ``At Rural Maine Marijuana Grow, Cops Find
Asian Passports, Plane Tickets from China, and Stolen Electricity,''
The Maine Wire, January 8, 2024.
\16\ Dylan Tusinski, ``How Cheap Weed from `Gray Market' Growers
Ends Up on Maine Dispensary Shelves,'' Portland Press Herald, August
17, 2025 (market harms and undercutting).
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Illicit Chinese fumigants and pesticides (including
organophosphates and novel blends) are being imported and applied in
unregulated grows. Most cannabis testing panels in Maine do not screen
for many of these agents, meaning contaminated product can pass
``safety'' screens; meanwhile, warrant executions frequently occur
without hazmat protocols, exposing officers to unknown chemical
threats. The result is adulterated cannabis moving along this
interstate pipeline to end-users throughout the eastern United
States.\3\
Maine's legal cannabis businesses are being undercut by foreign
criminal organizations that flood supply, evade taxes and compliance
costs, pay illegal wages, and launder profits into more properties--
collapsing legitimate margins and pushing local operators toward
insolvency.\17\ The enterprise also leverages illegal border crossings,
asylum claims, and permissive identity regimes to move both workers and
money; in February 2024, 3 Chinese nationals were caught illegally
entering Maine from Canada, and our records work has documented Chinese
nationals obtaining out-of-State driver's licenses and surfacing
repeatedly in Maine property records tied to grows.\18\ \19\
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\17\ Steve Robinson, ``Three Chinese Nationals Caught Sneaking Into
Maine from Canada Amid Asian Organized Crime Epidemic,'' The Maine
Wire, February 28, 2024.
\18\ Steve Robinson, ``Sheriff Docs Show Chinese Illegal Aliens Got
NY Drivers Licenses Before Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Freedom,'' The
Maine Wire, July 22, 2025; and Steve Robinson, ``Maine Cops Warn BMV
Issuing Driver's Licenses to Individuals with Bogus Social Security
Numbers,'' The Maine Wire, May 30, 2024; and Steve Robinson, ``Chinese
Impostor Points Up Mortgage Scheme Leveraged by Cannabis Cartels in
Maine,'' The Maine Wire, August 27, 2025.
\19\ [Sic]
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Maine's experience is now a case study in how PRC-linked criminal
networks exploit U.S. real estate, financial blind spots, and
regulatory seams; convert homes into industrial drug sites; export the
product to neighboring States; and leave Mainers with gutted houses,
fires, toxic residues, and collapsing lawful markets. The record is no
longer anecdotal; it is documented, cross-corroborated, and charged in
Federal court.\7\
Thank you for your leadership and for the opportunity to place this
record before the subcommittee. I am available to brief staff, provide
property-level datasets, and connect you with Maine's long-suffering
cannabis entrepreneurs. I am also submitting, for the record, copies of
our investigative work detailing the individuals, businesses, and
financial institutions implicated in this conspiracy.
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