Alleged leaders of a drug cartel in Germany arrested in Phuket and Koh Pha Ngan

The suspected leaders of a European drug trafficking network arrested by Thai police this week had reportedly been living in Thailand for several years as fugitives. Reports say German officials had filed an Interpol red notice for their arrest in a crackdown where 20 people allegedly involved in the drug trafficking operation were arrested in Germany. Allegedly, they were trafficking a new psychoactive substance which some people reportedly died after taking.

38 year old Alexander Wolfien was arrested at a home near Phuket’s Rawai beach and 42 year old Alex Kartun, who holds dual German and Russian nationality, was arrested at a villa in Koh Pha Ngan, one of the trio of islands in the Gulf of Thailand off the Surat Thani coast.

The German Embassy in Thailand had filed a request with the Thai Immigration Police to arrest and deport Wolfien and Kartun, saying that officers in Germany had arrested around 20 suspects tied to the case. Reports say they new psychoactive substances from chemicals and herbal substances, like synthetic marijuana. The drugs were trafficked across several European countries. Wolfien and Kartun were allegedly the leaders in the operation.

Immigration Bureau Chief Sompong Chingduang says police requested an arrest warrant from the Criminal Court on April 20. The men were arrested on Tuesday.

“A team led by Lt Thawip Changtoh investigated the case until they were certain where both men were living before making the arrests. We can confirm that Russian nationals who were friends of both the men had been helping them take refuge.”

SOURCE: Phuket News