Authorities suspect gang members were involved in 7 killings at illegal marijuana farm

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — More than four years after the shooting deaths of seven Laotian workers at an illegal marijuana farm in Southern California, authorities revealed Friday that they believe the killings were carried out by gang members and pleaded with people to come forward with any information.

Investigators believe the suspects were gang members of Laotian descent from the San Diego area. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said the agency faces a “major obstacle” obtaining information because at least some witnesses and victims entered the U.S. illegally and may have been victims of human trafficking.

Migrants who were working at the farm may fear retribution and distrust law enforcement, Bianco said. Many are from countries where law enforcement is “corrupt and further victimize the victims,” he added.

“When these immigrants come to our country, that fear of law enforcement makes them easy targets of crime because the suspects know that the victims will be reluctant to cooperate with the criminal investigation, or they may not report the crime at all. This case has been an example of that," Bianco said.

“We know there are people out there who have additional information about these murders and the identity of the suspects,” he added.

Investigators have identified a mid-size, dark-colored SUV that was believed to be used during the killings in the remote community of Aguanga, the sheriff's department said in a news release.

Bianco described the killings as a part of a “home-invasion type robbery” carried out to obtain money. He noted that a significant amount of cannabis was left behind.

Six people were found dead on the property, and a woman who was shot there died later at a hospital.

More than 20 people lived on the property, which had makeshift dwellings and a nursery. Authorities found more 1,000 marijuana plants and several hundred pounds of processed marijuana.

The state broadly legalized recreational marijuana sales in January 2018. But the illicit market continued, partly because hefty legal marijuana taxes sent consumers looking for better deals in the illegal economy.

Aguanga is a small mountainous community about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of San Diego with horse ranches along dirt roads.