A woman and two men are facing charges after detectives discovered a marijuana grow house in southwest Miami-Dade, authorities said.
Jose Manuel Castro-Cala, 24, Jorlyns Castillo-Mahiques, 37, and Dorgelys Reyes-Leon, 33, were arrested Tuesday on charges including marijuana trafficking and possession with intent to sell or manufacture marijuana, according to Miami-Dade Police arrest reports.
Castro-Cala posted bond and was released from jail. Castillo-Mahiques and Reyes-Leon had their bonds set at $10,000 but both were being held on warrant cases, jail records showed. It was unknown if any of them have hired attorneys.
According to the arrest reports, the arrests were made during an ongoing narcotics investigation at a home in the 13400 block of Southwest 181st Terrace. When a detective went to the home he noticed a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside, the reports said.
Castillo-Mahiques and Reyes-Leon were seen trying to enter the home's front door and when the detective confronted them, all three denied living at the home or that they were trying to enter, even though they had all been seen entering and exiting the home during previous surveillance, the reports said.
Castro-Cala consented to a search of the home and spontaneously told the detective he had a marijuana hydroponics lab inside but had recently dismantled it because he thought police were surveilling him, the reports said.
Inside the home detectives found a broken down pot lab in a room and another one in a garage, the reports said. Two bags containing a half pound of processed marijuana were also found, according to the reports.
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While they were in custody in a police car, the defendants made incriminating statements that contradicted their initial statements to the detective, the reports said.
Castro-Cala later said he was responsible for the lab and that he had recently lost his job and wanted to grow pot to supplement his income, the reports said. He also said he was never able to fully grow the plants before dismantling the operation because he was afraid of getting caught, but a calendar found in the home showed there had been four previous crops in the home in 2015, the reports said.
Castro-Cala also admitted he had been stealing electricity from FP&L through a power diversion, the reports said.
