Break-in leads police to secret garden of illegal pot

A break-in at a children’s bookstore early Tuesday in Ballard led SPD officers to a secret garden of illegal marijuana plants in the neighborhood.

Read more from the SPD North Precinct blotter below:

Around 3:30 a.m. this morning, Seattle police received a report of an in-progress burglary at the bookstore, in the 1100 block of N.W. 85^th Street

Officers entered the store and found a large hole smashed in a wall. They cautiously climbed through the hole and immediately found themselves transported to a snowy land, filled with charming fauns and talking beavers standing amidst hundreds of marijuana plants.

Investigators believe a burglar or burglars broke into the storefront–which hosts a non-profit literacy program–and then smashed through one of the store’s walls to get to the illegal grow operation in a commercial space next door. It appears the suspects may have stolen one or two marijuana plants, but did not take any books.

Police do not believe the book store is involved in the grow operation.

Narcotics detectives seized 531 plants from the illegal pot grow and are investigating.