Vernon County Sheriff John Spears reported the arrest of a Stoddard man May 2 following the discovery of a marijuana manufacturing and trafficking operation linking two counties.

The Sheriff’s Office had received information related to drug trafficking involving local high school students, and has been pursuing various leads.  Their investigation led to a house near Hayward owned by Steven Miller, 56.

A joint investigation was conducted involving investigators and agents from the Vernon County Sheriff’s Office, the Sawyer County Sheriff’s Office, the Division of Criminal Investigation and the West Central MEG Unit.

On Friday morning simultaneous search warrants were executed at both Hayward and Stoddard at properties owned by Miller.

At the Hayward home, investigators discovered a sophisticated indoor hydroponic marijuana grow site with approximately 67 plants in various stages of growth.

At the Stoddard site, investigators discovered processed marijuana that had originated from the Sawyer County site, along with guns and cash.

Spears indicated that this is an ongoing case, and that Investigators continue to pursue leads developed during Friday’s searches.  He said that at least two more Wisconsin counties have been linked to this case, and that more arrests may be forthcoming.