Thai drug dealer tries to get meth back from cops, gets seriously injured
A suspected Thai drug dealer tried to get his meth back from cops, failed miserably, and only ended up getting seriously hurt in the process. The incident happened last night in the Phak Hai district of Thailand’s central Ayutthaya province.
Officers from Provincial Police Region 1 conducted a sting operation to buy 20,000 speed pills from the suspected drug trafficker, 45 year old Toey. Toey previously served a prison sentence for drug trafficking, Bangkok Post reported.
When Toey and an accomplice arrived at the agreed meeting point and became aware of the sting operation, they opened fire on the officers with a pistol and a shotgun.
Toey and his accomplice then fled to a nearby paddy field, leaving behind their meth pills and vehicles, which were seized by the police. The police brought the vehicles and drugs to Lad Chao station.
But Toey and his accomplice were determined to get their drugs back. The drug-dealing duo later snuck into the entrance of the station in an attempt to retrieve their lost goods. A patrol unit spotted them and, upon approaching them for a search, the suspects opened fire once again.
But karma seems to have played a role since Toey was left badly injured and unable to escape. Meanwhile, his accomplice fled the scene. The police are now investigating the suspected drug network, which involves multiple traffickers with violent tendencies, according to Pol Maj Gen Chayanon Meesati, Commander of Ayutthaya Police.
Thailand has struggled with a widespread drug abuse problem, particularly with meth, for several decades. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the prevalence of meth use in Thailand is among the highest in Southeast Asia.
The production and distribution of meth in Thailand are dominated by organized criminal networks, including those with connections to international drug trafficking networks.
The availability of meth in Thailand is high, and its affordability is relatively low compared to other countries in the region, making it a popular drug among young people and lower-income individuals.
The Thai government has taken steps to address the drug problem, including implementing law enforcement operations, increasing the availability of drug treatment and rehabilitation services, and launching public awareness campaigns.
Despite these efforts, the problem of meth abuse in Thailand remains a significant challenge, and the country continues to face a high rate of drug-related arrests, overdoses, and other related harms.
Meth continues to be the most popular, cheap, and readily available illicit narcotic in Thailand and Southeast Asia, where the synthetic drug trade is booming.
In 2021 alone, more than one billion meth pills were seized in east and Southeast Asia, according to a report released by the United Nations. The UN considers it the “drug of greatest concern” in the region.
In April 2021, Thai police arrested more than 120,000 drug suspects in the past six months. They seized more than 2.4 billion baht in assets and confiscated more than 260 million pills of illegal substances, including meth.
