Schaumburg police seize marijuana operation

Schaumburg police Thursday charged a village resident in connection with a pair of marijuana growing operations where officers reportedly seized nearly five pounds of the drug valued at more than $50,000.

Kelley R. Altom, 39, of 2220 Kensington Lane, faces two felony counts of production of cannabis and two felony counts of manufacture with intent to deliver cannabis.

A Cook County judge set Altom’s bail at $50,000 Friday. He must post $5,000 to be released from custody.

Schaumburg Police Special Investigations initiated a monthlong investigation into Altom after obtaining information from a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administrations task force, officials said.

After receiving a warrant, police searched Altom’s home Thursday night and reported finding an elaborate marijuana-growing operation in the crawl space. Officers recovered 48 marijuana plants and approximately 2,000 grams of packaged and processed marijuana with an estimated street value of $50,000, police said.

The amount of marijuana recovered makes the charge a Class 1 felony punishable by a maximum four to 15 years in prison, Cook County prosecutors said.

A Schaumburg building inspector assisted investigators with dismantling and removing the extensive electrical and ventilation components of the growing equipment, police said.

A second search was conducted at another home owned by Altom on the 600 block of Jameson in Hoffman Estates. Investigators discovered a smaller marijuana-growing operation and recovered five plants and approximately 75 grams of packaged and processed marijuana, police said.

Several thousand dollars in cash also was seized during the searches, according to police.

Altom, who according to prosecutors has a misdemeanor conviction for possession of cannabis from DuPage County, is scheduled to return to court March 24.

Staff writer Barbara Vitello contributed to this report