Updated at 1:26 p.m., Friday, January 26, 2007
Convicted felon accused of growing pot plants
Advertiser Staff
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Richard D. Velasco, of the Big Island, who has 22 prior criminal convictions, was arrested Jan. 16 and is in custody at the Federal Detention Center.
He was indicted Dec. 21 on two counts of "knowingly and intentionally manufacturing marijuana, to wit: the cultivation of one hundred or more marijuana plants," according to an indictment filed in U.S. district court.
Because Velasco has a prior felony drug conviction, if convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in jail and up to life in prison, according to the U.S. attorney's office.
