The Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force raided a marijuana operation in Flintstone on Friday, March 22.

According to LMJCDT officials:

Christopher Carson, 42, his wife April, 41, their son William, 20 and his fiancée Brittney Shavers, 21, were arrested during the seizure.

A hydroponic grow room had been built in the basement of a house the Carsons were living in at 1635 N. Cedar Lane.

The search warrant was executed at 9:30 a.m. and it took three hours to collect and inventory all of the evidence at the scene.

Agents seized 67 plants from the residence, with an estimated street value of $80,000, according to commander Pat Doyle.

“We had an ongoing investigation over the past two weeks,” Doyle said. “It was pretty high-tech for what we (typically) see around here. We are seeing a lot more hydroponic grow operations to grow a higher quality plant.

The large indoor operation filled a 16- by 10-foot room, which had plants in varied stages of growth.

“They stagger the crops so they always have some that are ready to (be sold),” Doyle said. “It had a pretty elaborate ventilation system.”

The largest marijuana plants measured between 3-4 feet tall.

Doyle believes the operation had been manufacturing marijuana for at least six months.

“It’s nice when you can get the source and wrap it up in one place like this,” Doyle said.

Task force agents were assisted by the Walker County Sheriff’s Office and the Drug Enforcement Agency.