Phuket man caught with meth pills at checkpoint

In the midst of Phuket’s recent spate of drug crackdowns and busts, a man has been caught with meth pills at a checkpoint in Thalang district. The man, 36 year old Pongpan, was caught with 107 meth pills at the Phuket Checkpoint in the Mai Khao sub-district earlier this week.

The police had been alerted earlier that the suspect who carrying illegal drugs was entering Phuket in a vehicle through the Phuket Checkpoint.

Pongpan was taken to the Tha Chat Chai Police Station to face charges of illegal possession of Category 1 drugs with intent to sell, The Phuket Express reported.

This news comes as police across Phuket have continued to bust drug criminals in recent months, particularly for meth. Last week, police seized 10,504 meth pills from a man in the main city district.

Also last week, police found drugs and weapons in a man’s minivan in Patong. The police found nine meth pills, a gun, 10 bullets, a knife, and an axe in the minivan.

In Patong, renowned as a tourist hotspot in Phuket, police have recently intensified a drug crackdown on Bangla Road. Last night, in a crackdown targeting touts, a team of Patong Police and Kathu district officials tested 117 people out of the 195 on its list. Two men tested positive for drugs. Kathu District Chief Siwat Rawarangkul said the campaign to drug test “random” individuals would continue as part of an ongoing war on drugs.

Patong Police also set up two checkpoints at both ends of Bangla Road for two hours.

Who knows when Phuket, and Thailand overall, will ever find a long-term solution to its deeply entrenched problems with meth.