Early this morning, a thief rode a mountain bike onto a permitted cannabis farm north of Fortuna in the Palmer Boulevard area and stole 30 pounds of the popular strain, Wedding Cake, which was packaged and ready for pickup by a distributor who had promised to pay $50,000. The thief also took a large amount of other product not yet packaged and weighed for sale.

There is a $10,000 reward for information leading to the return of the product.

“We’re right outside of the city limits,” the farmer told us. “We have a county-approved processing facility.” The facility is right beside their home, she told us.

According to her, the thief “first entered the property around our house about 2:50 a.m.” She and her son have seen tracks that they believe indicate that the thief rode a mountain bike onto their farm. But the thief avoided most of their cameras and they don’t have him on surveillance tape for most of the time he was in the area.

“When we first saw him, it looked like he was scoping [the property] out,” the cultivator told us. He disappeared and possibly left their farm for about 30 minutes and then returned and entered the processing facility which was unlocked. “It was 10 feet from our house,” the farmer explained. “We have a security gate.”

The camera captured the thief entered their processing facility about four this morning. He was wearing a mask, gloves and a black hoodie as well as what they believe are black canvas Converse skateboarder type shoes.

Thief entering the building. [Crop of surveillance video]

Once inside the building, the thief emptied out contractor bags full of trim and filled them with the turkey bags of Wedding Cake. “We grow indoor quality,” she said. He also took an unknown amount of other product.

The thief’s tracks were followed off the farmer’s property and through a neighbors onto Bryant Lane.

The farmer is hopeful that someone might be able to identify the thief, “He has a distinctive gait…At one point we could see his neck and he’s a white male.” She and her son believe that the man is about 5’8″.

“He had a very identifiable sweatshirt,” she pointed out. “You can see in his sweatshirt [front pocket] he has something very big.”

Thief exiting the building twice with the stolen cannabis. [Crop of surveillance video]

She also wants people to be on the lookout for the product which she believes is easily identifiable as it looks as if it were grown indoors.

If you have any information about the theft, please contact the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251.