Mae Hong Son police seize 77 gambling machines in raid

Police in Mae Hong Son conducted a raid and seized 77 coin-operated gambling machines from a rented house, suspecting plans to open a gambling den. The confiscated items are now being processed for legal action.

Yesterday, October 24, Police Lieutenant Colonel Thawatchai Surinta, commander of Border Patrol Police Company 336, assigned Police Lieutenant Sumrerng Chamnarn, deputy commander of the same unit, to lead a team of five officers.

They collaborated with customs officials from Mae Hong Son, officers from Pang Mapha Police Station, administrative officials from Pang Mapha district, soldiers from Infantry Company 722 of the Singhanat Task Force, and the Provincial Investigation Division of Mae Hong Son.

The joint task force inspected and seized 77 coin-operated gambling machines at house number 226/1, Moo 3, Baan Wana Luang, Tam Lod Sub-district, Pang Mapha district, Mae Hong Son Province. The charges include illegally importing or exporting goods without passing customs procedures and violating the Ministry of Commerce’s 2002 regulation on importing gaming machines into the kingdom.

“The items in the house, which belongs to a Thai national from the Isan region with a foreign husband living abroad, were rented out to others. It is suspected that illegal items were smuggled and hidden there, with plans to soon open a gambling den in the area,” stated a source from the arresting team.

Evidence and the seized items were documented and handed over to the investigators at Pang Mapha Police Station. The confiscated items are currently held at Border Patrol Police Company 336 for further legal proceedings, reported KhaoSod.

The police acted on information that the rented house was being used to store illegal items, likely in preparation to operate a gambling den.

In related news, police raided a luxury resort in the Na Jomtien area of Chon Buri on September 28 uncovering a gambling operation and arresting 15 Thai gamblers at the scene.