A New York resident accused of committing mortgage fraud in Napavine to get a loan on a house that has since been busted as a cannabis growing operation pleaded not guilty to a felony charge in Lewis County Superior Court on Wednesday.
Wei M. Yu, 70, was charged with one count of mortgage fraud, a class B felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, on March 5, 2024, for allegedly lying about his income to a mortgage provider in Lewis County in 2020.
While Yu purchased the property in 2020 and took out a mortgage claiming he worked at Chiliwist Creek Farm in Chehalis, law enforcement reportedly confirmed Yu has never worked in Washington state and found no evidence Yu ever resided at the Napavine address, according to court documents.
Yu, who is out of custody on his own personal recognizance, entered a not guilty plea to the mortgage fraud charge during a preliminary hearing in Lewis County Superior Court on Wednesday, March 27. Trial is scheduled to begin the week of Sept. 16.
Investigators reportedly uncovered the fraud while they were investigating an illegal cannabis operation at the property Yu secured the mortgage for, 216 U.S. Highway 12 in Napavine.
Local law enforcement personnel executed a search warrant on the property on July 24, 2023, after a detective with the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office received a tip from a Washington State Patrol Enforcement Team detective the month prior, according to previous Chronicle reporting.
While the growing operation is described as “large” in documents filed in Lewis County Superior Court, the specific amount of cannabis seized from the property was not publicly disclosed.
The Washington state Liquor and Cannabis Board and the state Department of Agriculture have reportedly confirmed the property has no licenses for either cannabis or hemp growing, according to court documents.
Electrical power records for the residence reportedly show the house and garage on the property consumed a total of 24,346 KWH between January and July 2023. For reference, the average electricity consumption for a Washington residence is 14,050 KWH per year.
In reports cited in the affidavit of probable cause, a Lewis County Sheriff’s Office detective noted “such a high power usage in a residence was consistent with a large cannabis growing operation.”
One suspect, identified in court documents as Jungpeng Wu, 30, was arrested after law enforcement officials found him inside the residence during the bust in 2023, according to previous Chronicle reporting. When questioned by officers via a Cantonese interpreter, Wu stated, “He was transported here from California to tend the plants” and said “he got paid $3,000 per month to do this,” according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in Lewis County Superior Court.
Wu faces one count each of violation of the uniform controlled substances act and unlawful use of a building for drug purposes. Each charge is a class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
He pleaded not guilty to both charges in July 2023 and posted $10,000 bail to be released from the Lewis County Jail. However, the court issued a no-bail bench warrant for Wu’s arrest in October after Wu missed two court hearings. The warrant was still active as of Thursday.
