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Weida Liu of China, who was convicted of delivering or manufacturing a large amount of marijuana plants locally was sentenced to time served and non-reporting probation on Thursday. Liu is pictured at the podium in Montcalm County Circuit Court next to his attorney, Elias Muawad of Bloomfield Hills. — Screenshot
STANTON — A Chinese national convicted of delivering or manufacturing a large amount of marijuana plants locally was sentenced to time served and non-reporting probation on Thursday.
Weida Liu, 38, was charged with delivery/manufacturing a controlled substance involving 45 kilograms or 200 or more marijuana plants and conspiracy to deliver/manufacture a controlled substance, both felonies.
The charges stem from an incident this summer at 2378 S. Satterlee Road in Montcalm Township. Montcalm County Prosecutor Tom Ginster has filed civil forfeiture proceedings against the property owner, Situ Shi Pei of Chicago.
Two possible co-defendants are listed in Liu’s court file, Donghong Li and Situ Shi Pei, both of whom are in the custody of Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to Ginster.
Liu pleaded guilty on Sept. 4 to one count with the second count to be dismissed and his sentence to only be time already served (11 days jail) as part of a plea agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office.
Liu was scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 16 before Montcalm County Circuit Court Judge Suzanne Kreeger, but the sentencing was adjourned after the judge said she was not inclined to follow the plea agreement and wanted to impose probation along with time served.
Liu returned to court on Thursday morning with his attorney Elias Muawad of Bloomfield Hills. After a lengthy conference between the attorneys and the judge at the bench, sentencing finally proceeded.
Kreeger sentenced Liu to five months in jail with credit for 11 days served and the remainder of the jail time to be suspended if Liu complies with the terms of his probation. Liu was also sentenced to one year of non-reporting probation, meaning the court probation office won’t be involved and it’s up to Liu to report any issues to the court. The judge agreed to terminate the probation early if Liu, who is currently living in Troy, wishes to move to Seattle, Washington, where he says he has family, as long as he pays all court costs and fines first and complies with ICE requirements.
Assistant Prosecutor Megan Billock said the plea agreement was made in part by her office to Liu because “Mr. Liu provided important information that the people were able to use in other cases.”
Near the end of the sentencing, a Michigan Department of Corrections officer told the judge that Liu is currently in “removable status” via ICE.
“You mean deported back to China, is that what you’re saying?” Liu asked via a Mandarin Chinese interpreter.
“It’s possible,” the judge told him.
“I have to raise my kids here. How can I be deported?” Liu asked.
“Well, that’s not my decision, sir,” the judge responded. “I understand that you were here legally in the United States. But when you break a law, then Immigration Control and Enforcement can revisit whether or not you should stay here.”
