Christian Hopka

Several nights of nearly around-the-clock surveillance by Columbia County Sheriff's Department deputies paid off Wednesday, when four people were arrested in connection with what Detective Lt. Roger Brandner called "the biggest drug case we have had in a number of years."

Deputies recovered 75 marijuana plants in various stages of maturity, amounting to about 15 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of $1,200 to $1,500 per pound - a total of $18,000 to $22,500.

The arrestees - Sean Barry, 48, of Madison; James M. Laing Jr., 48, of Waterloo; Peter D. Fortlage, 41, of Madison; and Christian Hopka, 61, of rural Deerfield - have allegedly used farm fields in southern Columbia County, without the owners' knowledge or permission, to cultivate marijuana for at least a decade, Brandner said Friday.

Specific charges were not filed as of late Friday. The four men do not have criminal records, according to the Wisconsin Circuit Court Access Web site. Hopka is a retired University of Wisconsin professor; the others had what Brandner described as "day jobs."

At about 8:40 p.m. Wednesday, Sgt. Tony Belay, who headed the investigation, reported seeing three people walking toward a marijuana patch in the town of Hampden, which had been under surveillance since Sept. 23.

At about 9:15 a.m., officers arrested Barry, Laing and Fortlage as they carried plastic garbage bags full of freshly harvested marijuana, Brandner said.

"We caught them, literally, with the trash bags of marijuana in their hands, walking back from the field," he said.

Deputies later arrested Hopka at his home north of Deerfield in Dane County, which is also the address of a greenhouse business that he owns, called Drumlin Nurseries.

Deputies executed three search warrants overnight Wednesday and Thursday in Columbia, Dane and Jefferson counties at the homes of the other suspects. Items seized include marijuana plants, several guns, a crate of ammunition, drug paraphernalia and cash totalling more than $4,000, according to court records.

The Wisconsin State Division of Criminal Investigation reportedly executed a search warrant at Hopka's home.

The case began when a tipster called the county's anonymous tip line (800-293-TIPS) Sept. 23 to report that he had seen what looked like cultivated marijuana plants growing in a farm field that his family owns. Later, Brandner said, the same tipster called the sheriff's department directly and asked to speak to a detective.

Once the tip was received, Belay was put in charge of the case, which involved nearly all of the county's law enforcement officers in one way or another, including the Portage Police Department.

"I really appreciate the work of our staff," Sheriff Dennis Richards said. "They put in huge amounts of hours away from their families, staying out all hours of the nights."

According to Columbia County Circuit Court documents related to three search warrants executed in the case, those hours of surveillance entailed not only watching the marijuana field, but also watching the homes of the arrestees over several days and nights.

Brandner said Hopka allegedly grew young "starter" marijuana plants in the basement of his home. About 25 plants were reportedly found there.

Subsequent investigations revealed that the four had allegedly conducted growing operations in several southern Columbia County fields, planting the marijuana either within fields planted in corn, at the edges of cornfields or at the edges of remote woods.

Over the last decade, the sheriff's department had investigated several reports of cultivated marijuana in Columbia County - most of which, Brandner said he believes, can be attributed to the arrestees.

"They were trespassing on people's land for the purpose of their illegal activity," Brandner said.

All four are expected to make their first court appearances Monday. Hopka is in the Dane County Jail in Madison, and the other three defendants are in the Columbia County Jail.

Richards said the tipster may get a cash reward for the information he gave that led to the arrests.

The case is a cooperative effort with the sheriff's departments of Dane and Jefferson counties, as well as the Wisconsin State Division of Criminal Investigation. Richards said it is possible it could eventually end up in federal court, because of the numerous jurisdictions involved.

More arrests are imminent, Richards said. Others are likely to face charges such as possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession with intent to deliver.

"We're talking spouses and friends, people like that," Brandner said.

The sheriff's department has taken steps for "asset forfeiture" to seize property connected to the case - including Hopka's greenhouse business.

"We, all of us, want people to know that, if they're going to do this and they get caught, we will make every effort to take from them everything that they have purchased or own from the sale of drugs," Richards said. "That could include your house, your car, your business or your TV set."

ljerde@capitalnewspapers,com

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