Man pleads guilty to growing marijuana

A Hillsborough man has admitted to growing more than 50 marijuana plants he later harvested and packaged for sale, authorities said.

Nicholas Tafaro, 30, appeared before Superior Court Judge Edward Coleman Friday and pleaded guilty to first-degree maintaining a marijuana production facility, first-degree possessing more than 50 marijuana plants with intent to manufacture and distribute and third-degree possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne Forrest said.

Assistant Prosecutor Robert Pollock handled the case for the state, and Gabriel Lependorf represented Tafaro.

Members of the New Jersey National Guard discovered the plants during a flyover of the property on Millstone River Road on Aug. 28, Forrest said.

During a search, members of the prosecutor's Organized Crime and Narcotics Task Force and local police found 51 plants, ranging from 2 feet to 5 feet tall, Forrest said. They also found 2 pounds of harvested marijuana and seized items used for growing the drug indoors, including high-powered lighting systems and chemical fertilizers, Forrest said.

Tafaro admitted that he had the plants, which he grew and harvested with the intent to distribute, Forrest said. He also admitted that he had a "grow room" in the attic that he used until the plants were mature enough to be planted in the yard, Forrest said. Tafaro faces up to 20 years in prison when sentenced on May 15.