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Man Disguised 1,000 Pot Plants as Christmas Trees in CA Desert

By Deanne Katz, Esq. on September 21, 2012 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Having disguised his pot plants as Christmas Trees, Abdul Jamar probably thought he was invincible when it came to law enforcement. But there were a few problems with his plan.

One, the 'trees' were astonishingly tall for pines growing in the California desert in the summertime. Two, marijuana leaves don't look like pine needles. Three, if you've already been busted for growing pot then the cops are going to be suspicious of anything your green thumb creates.

Jamar was arrested after a sheriff's deputy found over 1000 plants growing in two 50-by-100 foot enclosures on his property. But this wasn't his first run in with the law.

That same sheriff's deputy busted Jamar back in June for his growing operation, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. At the time, his farm was about 6 miles from where it was when he was busted again last week.

This latest plot took up about five acres in Lancaster, California, near Los Angeles. It's not a place where you typically see a lot of greenery.

Disguising the pot plants wasn't the problem. Jamar was arrested for growing them in the first place. Sure California allows medical marijuana but that doesn't give everyone a license to grow what is still an illegal substance.

Having marijuana is a crime but having a lot of it generally raises the charges to possession with intent to sell. Growing it is a separate crime but the potential penalty is generally harsher because cultivation presumes intent to distribute.

The fact that Jamar has been caught for this before also works against him. If he's found guilty this time around a judge will likely use that information to determine his sentence. Likelihood of reoffending is often a reason for harsher punishments.

We can't say for sure, but the judge might find that getting caught for the same crime twice in three months increases the likelihood Jamar will reoffend.

Sheriffs estimate the amount growing was worth around $4000, according to the Los Angeles Times. Jamar will have plenty chance to explain himself in court. For now he's being held in jail on suspicion of growing all that weed.

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