Estimated $1 million pot field discovered....

September 14, 2007

GREENE COUNTY TN (WATE) -- Local and state officers have cleared a Greene County marijuana field worth an estimated $1 million on the street.

One of four armed suspects guarding the large field is custody. Three other suspects are still at large.

Officers estimate there are between 8,000 and 12,000 plants that range in height from 5' to 14'.

The field is 50 to 75 yards wide and between 600 to 700 yards long.

A farmer found the plants and told authorities.

Then a state Highway Patrol helicopter pilot helped Drug Task Force officers spot the field and find the suspect who was caught.

The marijuana field is three miles from the Cocke County border, where another Highway Patrol helicopter found a 4,500 plant field near Newport. This is a fairly remote area in the foothills of the Smokies near the I-40/I-81 split.