4 arraigned for attempted pot theft

September 19, 2014

Daniel Swanger

By Allison Scarbrough. OCP Editor.

HART — Four Hesperia-area men were arraigned Friday in 78th District Court on charges of attempted larceny over $1,000 and possession of burglary tools stemming from a bizarre incident at a marijuana growing operation in rural Newfield Township Wednesday that involved the firing of a gun.

Dillan Slade, 17, and Jerome-James Kenneth-Hampton, 19, were arrested

Dillan Slade

Wednesday following an “exhaustive” manhunt by police in a rural, swampy area. Daniel Swanger, 46, and Jesse Ingalls-Johnson, 21, were on the loose until police apprehended them Thursday.

Bond was set at $10,000/10 percent for all four suspects.

Jerome-James Kenneth-Hampton

A female called 911 after she saw men dressed in camouflage with their faces covered emerging from the woods to enter a medical marijuana growing operation. She told police that she called out to them; a gunshot was fired; and the men ran off.

No one was injured during this incident, which occurred outside of Hesperia in “a rural country area, with woods, swamps and corn fields,” Oceana County Undersheriff Tim Priese said.