Three Albany area people charged after Maine pot bust

PHOTOGRAPHER: The Associated Press

Three people from the Albany area were arrested after police said they seized 86 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $200,000.

Police Chief Edward Strong said police raided a home on Old Dennett Road on Wednesday night and found 51 marijuana plants in bloom and the remnants of another 28 that had been harvested.

Strong told the Portsmouth Herald that the basement had been converted into a sophisticated marijuana processing facility.

He said police got a search warrant after getting electricity usage records from Central Maine Power and monitoring the comings and goings from the home.

Charged with aggravated cultivating of marijuana were the renter of the house, 36-year-old Francis Burns of Kittery, along with 34-year-old Evan Ploof of Watervliet, 38-year-old Matthew Taylor of Delmar, and 30-year-old Melissa Neppl of Albany.