United States

Deputies Find $500 Million Opium Poppy Field in North Carolina

A 37-year-old man was arrested and charged with two felonies

A North Carolina sheriff's deputy recently discovered an opium poppy field outside of Charlotte worth an estimated $500 million, officials told NBC News.

More than 2,000 plants, which can be used to make opium, morphine and heroin, were found on an acre of land on a farm near the town of Claremont, the Catawba County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

Cody Xiong, 37, was arrested at the farm Tuesday and charged with two felonies, officials said. He was later released after posting $45,000 bail.

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