Parents have been arrested after a missing toddler was found at an illegal marijuana grow in Northern California

The Butte County Sheriff’s Office said a 3-year-old child reported missing by his parents was found in an illegal marijuana grow operation in May 2024.

According to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office, the parents of a 3-year-old child were arrested after the toddler was reported missing and later found in an illegal marijuana grow operation.

The agency said the mother reported the child missing late in the evening of May 6 from a 51-acre property in Bangor Parish, about 70 miles north of Sacramento.

Officers, a K9 team and search and rescue teams began searching for the child and discovered he had been missing since approximately 7:30 p.m. that same night.

The sheriff’s office said investigators found evidence that the parents were growing marijuana on the property and that the child visited marijuana grow sites with the parents.

A K9 team eventually led officers to an illegal marijuana grow operation around 3:20 a.m. the next morning, where the child was found under a tarp near hundreds of marijuana plants, the sheriff’s office said.

The toddler was cold and required immediate medical attention. After spending time in the hospital, she was released to Butte County Child Care, the sheriff’s office said.

The parents, both in their 30s, were arrested for child endangerment and officers later served a search warrant at the home where they found £6,674. processed marijuana, 5,257 marijuana plants and four firearms.

The sheriff’s office did not say whether any charges will be filed against the parents in connection with these findings.