A suburban mother-of-two with a keen interest in equestrianism has been accused of running a multi-million dollar marijuana enterprise from a warehouse in New York City.
Andrea Sanderlin was described by friends and neighbours in the upmarket town of Scarsdale as a “soccer mom” who drove a Mercedes SUV and competed in horse riding competitions.
But the federal drug enforcement agency alleges that the 45-year-old was in charge of a “sophisticated operation to grow and process marijuana”, according to the criminal complaint.
The DEA began investigating Sanderlin after a man arrested in a separate drugs raid identified her as growing marijuana in Brooklyn or Queens. Investigators linked Sanderlin, who has two daughters aged 3 and 13, to a warehouse that was using “an unusually high amount of electricity”.
The warehouse was filled with over $3m worth of hydroponic marijuana and the organization covertly produced 3,000 marijuana plants,” Brian Crowell, special agent in charge at the DEA, said in a statement on Tuesday.
Sanderlin was arrested after agents followed her to the warehouse. In a separate raid on her Scarsdale home authorities found books on how to grow marijuana and how to launder money, according to the DEA.
Sanderlin has pleaded not guilty to narcotics trafficking, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. She is awaiting a bond hearing.
