FARMINGTON – Law enforcement agents harvested 120 marijuana plants in three towns on Aug. 3, according to Lt. Niles Yeaton of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department. The plants were found in fields in New Vineyard, Temple and Farmington.

Street value of marijuana from a mature plant is estimated at $1,000. This harvest, of smaller plants, was estimated to have a street value of $50,000 to $60,000, Yeaton said.

Suspects are difficult to identify in these sorts of crimes, he said, because growers often plant marijuana on land of unsuspecting owners. Occasionally suspects are found when paths to the fields are discovered, but most of the time linking people to specific plants is difficult. The crops are often found on an anonymous tip, he said.

For the illicit growers, “It’s a pretty easy ballgame for them,” Yeaton said.

“The more plants we eradicate, the higher the price goes, so young kids can’t afford it.”