Attorney General Gentner Drummond announced that the Oklahoma Organized Crime Task Force, in cooperation with 27 law enforcement agencies across the country, arrested 20 individuals associated with a large criminal organization known as the Hao Chen Organization. This group was reportedly responsible for trafficking approximately one million pounds of marijuana valued at $1.5 billion.
The investigation, named Operation Blunt Force, focused on fraudulent medical marijuana licensing activities led by Hao Tong Chen between 2021 and 2025. Authorities executed more than 50 search warrants and seized 12 firearms during the operation. Four people were deported as part of these efforts.
A multi-county grand jury indicted 19 defendants in November on 18 felony counts including racketeering, conspiracy to defraud the state, document fraud, aggravated manufacturing of marijuana, and unlawful proceeds.
According to investigators, Chen managed a “straw owner” scheme to unlawfully obtain licenses from the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) and registrations from the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (OBN), violating residency requirements. The group recruited local residents to act as straw owners using their identities for false applications while diverting illegally grown marijuana into the black market. Financial records indicated that Chen’s accounts received substantial cash deposits and wire transfers from New York used to compensate straw owners and other participants.
“This operation demonstrates my office’s unwavering commitment to protecting the safety of Oklahomans and dismantling sophisticated criminal organizations that exploit our state’s medical marijuana system,” said Drummond. “These defendants allegedly orchestrated a multi-state criminal enterprise that undermined the integrity of our licensing process and violated the trust of Oklahomans. When criminal organizations divert marijuana to the black market, they put our communities at risk and fund further illegal activity. I am grateful to the 27 agencies across the country that worked together to bring these individuals to justice and make Oklahoma safer.”
The investigation determined that those involved operated in several states including Oklahoma, New York, Texas, Nevada, California, Colorado, Illinois, and Washington. Financial transactions connected with this enterprise moved between Oklahoma and other locations such as New York, Nevada, Texas, California, New Mexico, Missouri, Georgia, Illinois, Washington, Oregon and China.
“I am proud of the dedicated work of our Organized Crime Task Force and the remarkable collaboration it made possible,” Drummond said. “This task force was built to take on exactly these kinds of sophisticated, multi-state criminal enterprises, and Operation Blunt Force is a testament to what our team can accomplish when we work together with partners across the country. We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to protect Oklahoma from those who seek to exploit our state for personal gain.”
The effort involved federal agencies like DEA offices in Houston; Oklahoma City; Reno; FBI Oklahoma City; ICE; along with numerous sheriff’s offices throughout Oklahoma counties such as Blaine County Sheriff’s Office or Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office.
“Over the past few weeks, the DEA New York’s Trident Group conducted an operation with the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office and our law enforcement partners which targeted and dismantled a large-scale illicit marijuana grow trafficking operation which is tied to an international money-laundering network. These criminal organizations were not only flooding our communities with illicit drugs but also using financial schemes to hide and move their illegal profits” stated DEA New York Enforcement Division Special Agent in Charge Farhana Islam. “The DEA and our law enforcement partners in New York and across the country remain committed in targeting those drug trafficking organizations and individuals who attempt to gain [sic]the system from cultivation to cash flow.”
The Queens District Attorney’s Office contributed support during this operation.
“Unlicensed and unregulated marijuana products pose a serious threat to the communities where they are illegally sold,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.“My office was proud to assist the office of Attorney General Gentner Drummond and its law enforcement partners in dismantling an illegal marijuana trafficking operation in Oklahoma with alleged ringleader based in Queens County.We will continue pursuing our own investigations while working alongside agencies nationwide ensuring public protection from illicit product.”
Gentner Drummond serves as Oklahoma’s Attorney General where he focuses on crime prevention—including action against organized crime—government transparency,and tribal relations.His background includes nearly three decades practicing law,military service as a U.S.Air Force pilot,and founding a Tulsa-based firm.He advocates for stronger laws against crimes like drug distribution through collaborations among state,federal,and local authorities.Official biography
