Police detect 113 opium poppies in Vietnamese farmer's garden

Anti-narcotics police investigators have found and seized 113 opium poppies planted in a farmer's garden in Vietnam's northern region, the provincial police said.  

The officers found the plant as they raided a house in Thai Binh Province, around 100 kilometers (62 miles) to the southeast of Hanoi.

The poppies, planted by Bui Trung Phong, 52, have bloomed and some have grown pods, the dried latex from which can be used to extract opium.

Phong told the police that a friend gave him the seeds and he planted them in his sister's garden.

Police have seized all the plants and are building a case against Phong.

Those who are caught planting opium poppy or other narcotic trees in Vietnam are subject to punishment by official warning. Repeated violations face jail terms of up to seven years, according to the Penal Code.