Thousands of pot plants found in Ohio field

NEW PLYMOUTH, Ohio (AP) — State and local authorities say they’ve found more than 17,000 marijuana plants in southeast Ohio with an estimated street value of millions of dollars.

Vinton County Sheriff Dave Hickey says the 400-pound haul is the largest in the county since the 1980s. Hickey says the pot was found Tuesday near New Plymouth in a routine helicopter flyover by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation and the sheriff’s task force.

The Athens Messenger reports the plants were found on property that is isolated farm area and partly state forest.

Hickey and Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine say in a news release that the site is believed to be part of an organized Mexican drug operation.