Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
OGDEN — Police are warning of a new scam after a shooting tragedy that left five officers wounded and one dead.
Investigators say a family received a call soliciting money for the injured officers, and notified police. Officers say the suspicious call came from a number at Weber State University, but investigators have no leads as to who is responsible.
Investigators point out on their Facebook page that a number of local businesses have put together legitimate fundraisers for the families of the victims. But they say no one should be calling homes asking for money.
Officer Jared Francom was killed during the raid on suspect Matthew David Stewart's home Jan. 4. Kasey Burrell, Shawn Grogan, Nate Hutchinson, Jason Vanderwarf and Michael Rounkles, all of the Weber-Morgan Narcotics Strike Force, were wounded.
The Standard Examiner reports investigative warrants obtained by the paper offer some additional insights about what led to the raid.
In September, a woman told police she had witnessed a hydroponic marijuana growing operation at Stewart's home. She said there were 12 to 15 marijuana plants inside the home at the time. It's uncertain if that alone led to the raid. In a police report, an officer said he was unable to find any prior history of drug activity in the home.
The DEA says it's generally rare to find an indoor marijuana growing operation. Spokeswoman Sue Thomas tells the paper marijuana usually is grown outdoors in Utah. Indoor grows usually happen because people want to keep them secret from police or they want to protect the grows from would-be drug thieves.
Mature plants can generate between $1,000 and $2,000 on the streets, depending on the quality.
