Thai cops seize 24.5 kilos of heroin hidden in pickup fuel tank

Police apprehended 58 year old man for smuggling a huge stash of heroin hidden in a pickup truck’s fuel tank. He admitted to being paid 80,000 baht by a Burmese agent to transport the drugs.

Police conducted the arrest following intelligence reports indicating an impending drug smuggling operation from the Sangkhlaburi district border into Thailand. The operation involved a grey Toyota Vigo pickup truck with the registration number บห3619 Kanchanaburi.

The vehicle was reported to have left Sangkhlaburi and was heading towards Thong Pha Phum district. Acting on this information, officers set up a checkpoint at the Thong Pha Phum intersection in the Tha Khanun subdistrict.

Upon stopping the vehicle, police identified Prakob, also known as Boy Dontako, as the driver. An initial search of the vehicle revealed nothing illegal, however, a suspicious sound from the fuel tank prompted a more thorough inspection.

Technicians were called in to dismantle the fuel tank, where they discovered 70 packs of heroin, each weighing 350 grammes, amounting to 24.5 kilogrammes. Prakob was immediately taken into custody and transported to Thong Pha Phum Police Station for further questioning and legal proceedings.

Prakob confessed that on October 9, he was contacted by a Burmese national known only as Toi from Phaya Tong Su district in Myanmar. Toi hired him to collect the drugs from the Three Pagodas Pass border area, promising a payment of 80,000 baht (US$2,400).

Heroin smuggling

Early the following morning, Prakob drove from his residence in the Mueang Ratchaburi district to the border checkpoint in Sangkhlaburi. He left the vehicle at the border, where Toi took it across to Myanmar. After two hours, the vehicle was returned to Prakob, who was instructed to drive it to a petrol station in Mueang Kanchanaburi district, where another individual would take over the delivery.

“I was told to leave the truck at a petrol station in Mueang Kanchanaburi district, where someone else would pick it up,” Prakob disclosed during the interrogation.

However, Prakob never made it to the petrol station. Instead, he was intercepted at the Thong Pha Phum checkpoint, leading to his arrest and the seizure of the contraband.

The operation was led by Major General Naiwat Phadermchit, Commissioner of Police Region 7, and included the collaborative efforts of various law enforcement agencies.

Among those involved were Deputy Commissioner Chomchawin Pratananont, Kanchanaburi Provincial Police Commander Nakarin Sukonwit, Kanchanaburi Deputy Provincial Police Commanders Banthong Amarit and Kritchai Tongyu, and Detective Commander Banjong Amarit from Thong Pha Phum Police Station, reported KhaoSod.

They were supported by Border Patrol Police Company 135, Kanchanaburi Investigation Unit, Narcotics Suppression Bureau Division 4, Highway Police, Kanchanaburi Immigration Police, and soldiers from the Surasi Task Force.