A Gridley man was in court Wednesday after 24 tons of illegal marijuana were seized and destroyed by law enforcement in Sutter County.

According to the Yuba Sutter Narcotic and Gang Enforcement Task Force (NET-5), the marijuana discovered is valued at an estimated $60 million, and authorities say it was all being grown under the guise of hemp.

The suspect, Luke Wilson, has been a vocal advocate for hemp farming. He played a huge role in lifting the county's temporary hemp ban back in December, and we even visited his farm.

Wilson is Sutter County's main hemp grower. He's been an advocate for hemp farming for several years now, even working closely with county officials on overturning a hemp ban.

"Writing letters to the county, talking to the supervisors, talking to the ag department and how we can help make this thing work, because this is our business. We want it to succeed," Wilson said to CBS13 in December 2024.

Ultimately, his efforts were successful, and hemp is once again allowed to be grown and processed in Sutter County, with proper permitting. But that's something the county claims Wilson did not have.

"He had a permit to cultivate, but not process. He was in the process of getting that hemp processing permit," said Steven Smith, Sutter County administrator.

Wilson could grow hemp, but could not make products with it. Allegedly, that's what he was doing, and the county says a complaint came in to code enforcement.

The county said that upon arrival, officials found several issues pertaining to building violations and told Wilson they'd be back for further inspection.

"That's when the law enforcement officer was there, and my understanding is he had suspicions maybe it was marijuana and not hemp," Smith said.

From there, the narcotics team was called and things snowballed.

Hemp has THC at below 0.3%, while marijuana has THC at any percentage higher than that. The county said the plants were testing at marijuana levels.

County leaders say they feel duped after working with Wilson to accommodate hemp farmers.

"It's just very disappointing that someone who was that vocal basically was, in my view, trying to put one over on Sutter County and the goodwill that was shown by the ag commissioner and the county," said Jennifer Dupre, Sutter County district attorney.

Wilson's bail is set at $1 million.