Area hemp farmers, eager to cash in on a potentially lucrative new crop, are facing an unexpected problem as they prepare to harvest their fields this fall. Over the past several weeks, those farmers have had to defend their fields against thieves who mistakenly believe the plants are marijuana.
More than once, Will Weaver of New Paris has conducted stake-outs at his hemp fields in southern Elkhart County. Last Thursday, he observed a couple of men allegedly stealing some hemp plants from a field south of Millersburg. He called the police but also decided to pursue the suspects by car after they drove away. The pursuit crossed into Kosciusko County, then terminated near Cromwell in Noble County. That's where police caught up with the suspects. The two men attempted to flea on foot, but only one of them was captured, Weaver said.
One of the suspects, Quintin Castetter, 28, was arrested early last Thursday by the Elkhart County Sheriff's Department and charged with theft as a Level 6 felony. He allegedly stole more than $5,000 worth of plants from the Millersburg field.
The stolen hemp plants were returned to Weaver, but Weaver says this is just one of many incidents that have happened over the past two weeks. Working as a custom hemp harvester, he says thefts occurred on 11 consecutive days and affected either himself or his customers. So far, 20 people have been put in jail due to hemp thefts over the past two weeks.
According to Weaver, when the suspects were arrested, each one said they thought they were stealing marijuana plants.
Although hemp and marijuana are related, hemp does not contain the THC properties that can produce a high. Weaver wants the public to understand the difference—that you can't get high from smoking hemp.
This is the first year that hemp has been grown on a wide-scale basis in Indiana. Growers who planted hemp this year first had to obtain a research permit. Weaver says the plants have no commercial value for the thieves. Growers must possess a Certificate of Analysis issued by the state.
For Weaver and other licensed growers, each plant can be worth as much as $1,500, depending on the amount of seeds that can be harvested from it. One hemp field can easily be worth over a million dollars.
The threat from thieves makes this harvest season a little more challenging for Weaver and other growers. On a typical day, Weaver said he travels a couple hours away to harvest hemp for a customer then comes back at night to stake out his fields. He says he is running on little sleep, all while trying to build a new business.