Thai police seize drug kingpin’s luxury Bangkok house on Facebook Live

Thai police from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) went live on Facebook this morning to seize a 21 million baht luxury home in Bangkok’s Saphan Sung district. The house belonged to an alleged transnational drug trafficker and money launderer who police suspect has already fled Thailand.

In August, police seized 945 kilograms of “Ice” (methamphetamine) hidden in silicone sheets headed for Taiwan at Klong Toei pier in Bangkok.

Police arrested a man named Somchat and a woman named Pornthipa during the raid. After questioning the pair, police seized a further 76 kilograms of Ice from two more properties near Bangkok.

The police’s investigation found that Somchat and Pornthipa were hired by a man named Somprat, who had opened an import-export business in Thailand. This time the drugs were headed to Taiwan, but the company had previously shipped “goods” to many other countries.

Police gathered evidence and the court issued an arrest warrant for Somprat who is thought to have fled the country already.

Secretary-General of the ONCB Wichai Chaimongkol led the seizure of Somprat’s luxury home in Bangkok at 7.45am today.

On the outside, the house looks modern and luxurious. The inside, however, was completely empty. It was as if Somprat bought the property for 21 million baht and never set foot in it.

Wichai said the team were cracking down on drug dealers and drug trafficking, which is considered the “root” of crime in modern-day Thailand. He said criminal groups such as this one should be severely punished.

Methamphetamine-induced psychosis is often at the heart of Thailand’s most violent and heinous crimes. After the massacre in Nong Bua Lamphu earlier this month, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the Royal Thai Police to crack down on illegal guns and drug crimes, especially those related to methamphetamine.