KINGFISHER COUNTY, Okla. (KFOR) — An Oklahoma City man is now facing 13 charges after a multi-county grand jury indictment for his alleged part in helping to start up the illegal marijuana grow near Hennessey where four workers were found shot and killed execution-style last year.

As first reported by The Oklahoman, the grow’s bookkeeper, Kevin Pham, is facing 13 charges, including conspiracy against the state, filing forged instruments, aggravated manufacturing and trafficking controlled dangerous substances, possession of a controlled dangerous substance with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm after former felony conviction, financial transactions involving proceeds of unlawful acts, and a pattern of criminal offenses.

“Any prosecutor worth his salt can indict a ham sandwich,” said attorney Tom Cummings. “I’ve seen the indictment and they are serious counts, but it doesn’t mean anything.”

Cummings represents Pham in a separate civil forfeiture case.

In the indictment, the multi-county grand jury accused the 47-year-old of arranging a “straw ownership” on several marijuana grows in the state.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said Pham allegedly used this method to get around a state law that states an Oklahoma resident must own 75% of a marijuana grow. Drug agents previously told KFOR Pham is also linked to 63 other Oklahoma marijuana farms.

“This is not just the distribution of the legal marijuana. These are bad actors. And we need to find and we need to put them out of business,” said Drummond.

“He’s like a lot of people, a talented bookkeeper who keeps people’s books, tells them what they owe for taxes,” said Cummings.

Court documents allege that’s how Pham helped start the illegal Liu & Chen Farm near Hennessey.

“We allege in our indictment that Kevin Pham and Alex Chang paid, recruited Richard Ignazio to be that straw man,” said Drummond.

Chang and Ignazio are also facing charges.

On November 20, 2022, the Liu & Chen Farm became the gruesome crime scene of a quadruple murder. Drug agents said the gunman, and former grow employee, Wu Chen, is accused of gunning down other workers. He was arrested for the crime in Florida days later.

Whereas, Cummings said Pham is just a numbers guy.

“If you’re looking for the kingpin, [Pham] ain’t it. He’s just a normal person. He has the bad luck to be Asian in Oklahoma when there is a a raft of actions by OBN and other law enforcement targeting Asian people,” said Cummings.

However, AG Drummond begs to differ.

“[Pham] may be a regular guy, but the allegation and the evidence we’ve discovered indicate that he is a ringleader, a coconspirator in the promulgation of illegal operations in Oklahoma,” said Drummond.

With everything inside the indictment right now, Pham could be looking at 45 years in prison.

The Attorney General said his newly-formed drug task force and the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics have been fighting tirelessly against illegal marijuana farms. The two have closed down 15 illegal grow operations since May.

“While there are many law-abiding participants in the state’s medical marijuana industry, law enforcement has seen an influx of others who are using the situation to supply black-market marijuana throughout the country. I am proud of the Multi-County Grand Jury, the Organized Crime Task Force and the state Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs — all of which are working diligently to rid Oklahoma of this criminal pestilence,” said Attorney General Gentner Drummond.