Four Chinese nationals in connection with a Marijuana grow operation with an estimated street value of $22.3 million.

The four Chinese nationals—identified as Zhu Sheng Bing, Jinpeng Ma, Chenhui Shu, and Wei Sheng Deng—were arrested and booked last week, following a joint operation involving the Georgia Department of Agriculture and the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office. Both agencies announced the arrests during a joint press briefing on Tuesday. The Pierce County Sheriff said the four Chinese nationals remain in jail. Arrest records for Mr. Deng indicate he is wanted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Georgia Department of Agriculture and the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office first began investigating an alleged food manufacturing facility located in Pierce County about a month ago, with suspicions of illicit activity taking place at the facility. In particular, Pierce County Sheriff Ramsey Bennett said people working at the facility told an undercover detective from his office that the facility was “growing and processing an edible food product,” which prompted him to contact Georgia Agricultural Commissioner Tyler Harper.

While executing a search warrant last week, Georgia law enforcement officials reportedly seized 11,153 Marijuana plants. All four Chinese nationals are currently being held without bail.

Jeffrey Newman is a whistleblower lawyer and his firm represents whistleblowers in healthcare fraud under the False Claims Act (FCA) also whistleblowers under the SEC whistleblower program and CFTC whistleblower program including insider trading cases and cases involving evasion of US sanctions against China, Iran and Russia and other sanctioned entities. He can be reached at Jeff@JeffNewmanLaw.com or at 617-823-3217