On January 17, 2018, the Fairfield Police Department’s patrol division responded to a disturbance in the 5000 Block of Oakbrook Circle. Reportedly four adult males were fighting in the front yard of a residence and one involved was in possession of a handgun. Officers arrived on scene and detained two individuals involved. During the investigation, officers located a Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) extraction lab, AKA Butane Honey Oil/Butane Hash Oil, (BHO) within the residence. Based on the complexity of the investigation, the Fairfield Police Department’s Special Operations Team (SOT) responded to the scene and assumed the BHO lab investigation.
SOT detectives authored a search warrant for the residence and a search of the location was conducted. During the search, a large scale BHO lab, one firearm, and suspected cash proceeds were recovered. Quantities of THC concentrate and multiple pounds of marijuana were confiscated. Other narcotics to include cocaine, methamphetamine, Xanax tablets, psilocybin mushrooms, D-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and suspected phencyclidine (PCP) were also seized.
30-year-old Fairfield resident Robert Olivieri and 22-year-old Fairfield resident Nicholas Olivieri were arrested and booked into the Solano County Jail on multiple narcotic and firearm-related violations.
Due to medicinal and recreational marijuana legalization, the use of products containing marijuana is on the rise. In many American communities, there has also been a significant increase in the number of structural explosions related to the manufacture of cannabis (marijuana) concentrates.
Butane Honey Oil is a product containing highly potent marijuana concentrates obtained through an extraction process involving extremely flammable gas or solvents. When the BHO process goes wrong, it can have a catastrophic failure. Currently, there is no uniform tracking procedure for BHO lab explosions. In 2016, 189 BHO labs were reported to the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). The DEA reports 75% of the labs were reported in northern California and of the 189 labs, 46 were reported as an “explosion/fire.”
Proposition 64 that went into effect January 1, 2018, adds sections to the general laws of California, including Health & Safety Code Section 11362.1. Prop. 64 did not legalize marijuana, it only decriminalized the possession and use of marijuana for a person 21 years of age or older. Persons 21 years or older, without certain felony convictions, may possess no more than one ounce of marijuana at one time. BHO labs are prohibited and felony convictions carry a 3, 5, or 7-year prison sentence.
On October 9, 2015, Governor Brown signed Assembly Bill No. 243, Assembly Bill No. 266, and Senate Bill 643 into law, which collectively are known as the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act (“MMRSA”). The MMRSA establishes a State licensing element for medical marijuana uses while protecting local control by requiring that all such businesses must have a local license or permit to operate in addition to a State license.
Currently, Fairfield Municipal Code Section 25.22.4.6 prohibits medical and commercial marijuana dispensaries in all zones of the City. The Municipal Code does not permit the delivery of medical marijuana, mobile marijuana dispensaries or the outdoor cultivation of any marijuana. Current state law allows a person 21 years of age or older to cultivate up to 6 living plants at any one private residence.
For purposes of identification, Robert Olivieri is pictured in the black sweatshirt and Nicholas Olivieri appears to be wearing a black t-shirt.
