ALEXANDER COUNTY, N.C. -- Authorities made two arrests Wednesday night after cutting down illegal poppy plants in south Alexander County.
Officials told NBC Charlotte they received a tip about the plants Wednesday morning. The crop was found at 361 Cloyd Moore Lane which is south of Taylorsville in the Wittenburg community.
Deputies arrested Xee Yang and Cha Yang, both 61-years-old, for multiple felony drug manufacturing and trafficking charges.
An SBI agent told NBC Charlotte this is only the third drug bust of its kind in the United States; the second one happened in May 2017 in Catawba County.
Alexander County Chief Deputy Tod Jones said investigators are still working to determine a total street value. Poppy plants are a key ingredient in the creation of drugs like opium and heroin.
"It's unusual," he said. "You don't expect to see something like that in a small county like Alexander."
The Yang family declined NBC Charlotte's request for a comment as they walked into the sheriff's office. The suspects received a $500,000 bond, and they're scheduled to appear in court on Monday.