The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN) will take its concerns to Washington next week, testifying before a Homeland Security subcommittee about the role of foreign nationals—particularly Chinese nationals—in Oklahoma’s marijuana industry and the security risks that come with it.
Deputy Director Brian Surber said organized crime groups from a dozen countries across three continents have infiltrated the state’s marijuana market. He estimates that 70 to 80 percent of Oklahoma’s illegal operations are linked to Asian nationals, most of them Chinese.
“From March through August, ICE joined us on raids and arrested 45 foreign nationals at marijuana grows for immigration violations,” Surber said.
According to OBN, many foreign actors exploit fraud and “straw ownership” to bypass state law requiring farm owners to be Oklahoma residents. In those cases, locals are listed as nominal owners, while out-of-state or foreign investors maintain operational control.
Oklahoma once had more than 8,400 licensed marijuana farms at the peak of the market in 2022—three times the number of retail dispensaries. Since then, aggressive enforcement has cut the number down to just over 2,000.
“You have to bring dump trailers and skid steers just to handle the evidence,” Surber said. “These are massive operations spanning several acres with dozens of grow houses.”
The scale of production has raised red flags. The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority estimates the state produces 64 times more marijuana than licensed patients consume. That surplus, Surber said, feeds black market pipelines stretching across the U.S., with much of it tied to foreign-backed grows.
Since July 2021, OBN has seized 1.8 million marijuana plants and more than 200,000 pounds of processed cannabis—equivalent, Surber noted, to “a plant for every two Oklahomans.”
Still, language barriers pose challenges. With only one Mandarin-speaking agent and one civilian translator on staff, OBN struggles to conduct wiretaps and interviews at foreign-operated grows.
Surber said his testimony on Sept. 18 will emphasize the need for federal support to combat what OBN calls a global criminal foothold in Oklahoma’s marijuana trade.
Read the whole article from KTUL here.
