Smell of trouble: Bangkok busts 7 Vietnamese for selling cannabis

The Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) arrested seven Vietnamese men at a house in Bangkok for illegally selling cannabis after residents complained about the unpleasant, intoxicating smell.

Locals in the Bueng Kum district of Bangkok filed a complaint with the ONCB, stating that a group of Vietnamese nationals had disturbed the peaceful community by using cannabis and releasing smoke outside their rented house. Acting on the complaint, ONCB officers raided the house on Wednesday, October 9.

Upon arrival, officers found seven Vietnamese men living together in the house. They searched the property and discovered 128 kilogrammes of ground cannabis packed in 17 big plastic bags. The suspects admitted to using the ganja themselves and also selling it to people in Bangkok.

For disturbing other residents, each Vietnamese national was fined 5,000 baht. They also face further punishment of up to one year in prison, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both, for selling cannabis without a licence, according to Section 46 of the Protection and Promotion of Traditional Thai Medicine Knowledge Act.

In a related report, the British Ambassador to Thailand, Mark Gooding OBE, met with the ONCB to discuss the illegal smuggling of cannabis from Thailand into the UK. The outcome of the discussion was not disclosed in the report.

Although marijuana was removed from Thailand’s Category 5 drugs list, it remains illegal in many other places, particularly neighbouring countries. This raised concerns over the trafficking of cannabis from Thailand to other countries.

During the tenure of former Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, relevant departments considered reinstating cannabis as a controlled substance.

However, the leader of the Bhumjaithai Party and current Deputy PM Anutin Charnvirakul, opposed this idea, as he was a key proponent of cannabis legalisation in Thailand. A group of ganja sellers and patients who use it for medicinal purposes also opposed the move.

As of now, the issue has not been raised during the leadership of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.