On Monday, as police in Ngu Hanh Son District were inspecting a house in the district’s My An Ward, they found four cannabis plants rising about one meter each in the restroom on the house’s terrace.

The property is owned by a 59-year-old Australian man and his Vietnamese wife, 34.

The man at first said he grows the cannabis as "ornamental plants" but later admitted he has been growing them for personal use, according to police.

He had the trees placed on the terrace but as the police came, had hidden them all in the restroom.

Four cannabis plants hidden in a restroom on the terrace of a house in Da Nang,
September 2021. Photo courtesy of police

The man also tested positive for a narcotic substance.

Cannabis is on the list of narcotics forbidden in Vietnam. Those growing cannabis in small scale could be fined VND2-5 million ($86.16-215.40). Farmers found cultivating 500 to 3,000 plants could face jail terms of six months to three years, while those working on bigger scale could spend up to seven years in jail.

Worldwide, increasing numbers of countries and localities are legalizing medical or recreational use of marijuana, including almost 40 states in the U.S.