Clearfield man charged in connection with ‘illegal marijuana business’

FARMINGTON — A Clearfield man faces a long list of drug and gun charges in connection with the discovery of an “industrial-sized THC business.”

Theodore Starr-Smith, 39, faces 10 felony counts of illegal possession of a firearm and three felony counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, stemming from an investigation that originated in the Utah Department of Public Safety’s State Bureau of Investigation. He also faces three misdemeanor drug counts, according to filings in 2nd District Court in Farmington.

The charges, filed Thursday, stem from a series of searches on Aug. 12 — at a pair of Clearfield storage units rented by Starr-Smith’s girlfriend and at Starr-Smith’s Clearfield home. Starr-Smith is currently not jailed, according to the Davis County Attorney’s Office. An initial appearance in the case is set for Jan. 26, according to a filing Monday.

Charging documents say the probe into Starr-Smith started after State Bureau of Investigation officials received a tip he was “distributing THC products and fentanyl.” Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is the active ingredient in marijuana.

While the court papers didn’t reference discovery of fentanyl, they did reference discovery of marijuana and THC products in his home during a search there. “Agents then found evidence of a large-scale drug distribution operation in the Defendant’s kitchen,” reads a probable cause statement.

More specifically, investigators say they found 23 pounds of marijuana, 3.55 pounds of THC wax, 346 THC cartridges, 12 grams of cocaine and “psilocybin mushroom chocolate.” Two firearms were found in the Clearfield storage units, one gun was found in the Clearfield home in a room allegedly used by children and seven more firearms were found in a recreational vehicle parked hear the home. “Two of the firearms seized on that day were reported as stolen,” reads the probable cause statement.

A separate affidavit said the drugs and drug paraphernalia found in the August searches constituted “an industrial-sized THC business.” Starr-Smith and another woman named in the documents “were the owners and operators of the illegal marijuana business,” the affidavit reads.

The documents name the woman but she doesn’t show up in 2nd District Court records as facing charges in the matter.

During the course of the investigation, officials witnessed “short-term traffic” by visitors entering and leaving Starr-Smith’s home, the probable cause statement reads. “In some of those instances, police officers conducted traffic stops and located THC products,” it reads.

Starr-Smith has been convicted previously of felony weapons offenses, “making him a Category I restricted person,” the affidavit reads, which led to the 10 felony firearms charges.

According to 2nd District Court records in Ogden, Starr-Smith was found guilty in 2010 of two felony charges related to illegal possession of firearms.

Aside from the 10 illegal gun possession charges and three felony drug charges, Starr-Smith faces two felony counts of receiving stolen property, apparently stemming from the two allegedly stolen guns found during the Aug. 12 searches, carried out with warrants. The three misdemeanor drug charges round out the 18 charges he faces in all.

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