Crab Orchard man charged with growing 54 marijuana plants

A Crab Orchard man has been arrested after the Lincoln County sheriff found 54 marijuana plants growing in plain sight behind a house.

Roy A. Dooley, 48, was charged Wednesday with cultivating marijuana and violating the terms of his probation. An anonymous call on May 3 tipped the sheriff's department off about the marijuana plants, which were found along Mike Genton Road.

Sheriff Curt Folger said Dooley's mother was in the house when he and Deputy Jeremy Garrison arrived on the scene. She gave them permission to enter the back yard, though they didn't technically need permission, Folger said.

"These were just small plants," he said of the marijuana found behind the house. "They hadn't got very big yet."

Folger estimated the plants were two to three weeks away from reaching the size at which they probably would have been transplanted into the ground.

The sheriff's office initially issued a warrant for the arrest of Joshua Dooley, 26, but Folger said further investigation revealed they had been given "bad information" and the warrant for Joshua Dooley was withdrawn.

Roy Dooley was lodged in the Lincoln County Regional Jail, where he remained on a $22,000 cash bond as of Thursday afternoon, according to jail records.

Folger said while there's no doubt the plants were marijuana, they have still been sent off to KSP for official confirmation.

No more charges are expected against Roy Dooley, but Folger said he does expect to issue a warrant for Roy Dooley's brother, who is currently out of the state. Folger would not release the brother's name.