A man from the south-central Vietnamese province of Phu Yen has been probed for growing nearly 100 cannabis plants at his farm and selling the products to local drug users.

The Department of Police in Tuy Hoa City, Phu Yen Province confirmed on Wednesday it had initiated legal proceedings against Dang Ngoc Vinh, 51, for the illegal trade of narcotics.

Vinh has not been taken into custody but he is required not to leave his place of residence.

In February, police officers caught Vinh red-handed taking care of 99 cannabis plants weighing nearly 20 kilograms on a piece of land in An Phu Commune along with some other crops.

The man claimed to have collected cannabis seeds while working in the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong.

Vinh would harvest the stems, leaves, and branches of grown cannabis plants and sell them to local drug users.

Preliminary investigation revealed that Vinh had sold 0.5 kilograms of cannabis to a person in Tuy Hoa City for VND1 million (US$63) in February.

Police had been investigating the case and collecting statements from Vinh’s buyers before initiating legal procedures against him.

This is the first time officers in Tuy Hoa have discovered a local resident farming cannabis against the law.

According to Vietnamese law, growing cannabis is punishable by a fine worth VND2-5 million ($84-211) if the number of trees is under 500.

However, Vinh is charged for illicitly trading narcotics, a crime that carries a jail term of two to seven years.

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