3 foreigners arrested for attempting to smuggle cannabis to Europe

The Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) and Thai Customs officials arrested three drug smuggling foreigners, two Malaysians and one Singaporean, at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok for attempting to smuggle cannabis to Italy and the UK.

Officials received a tip-off that certain foreigners intended to use Thailand as a route to traffic cannabis into Italy and the UK, prompting close monitoring of suspicious individuals. This information led to the arrest of three suspects on November 1 and 2.

In the first case, officers apprehended the Singaporean man, whose name was not disclosed, on November 1 with 29 kilogrammes of cannabis buds. The man hid the drugs in his luggage and was preparing to board a flight to his home country, Singapore. The suspect reportedly intended to transit in Singapore before taking a connecting flight to Italy to deliver the drugs to his Italian client.

In the second case, on November 2, officials arrested two Malaysian nationals who planned to travel to Singapore and then to the UK to deliver 70 kilogrammes of cannabis. Police discovered the illegal items hidden in four separate backpacks.

The Secretary of the ONCB, Phanurat Lakboon, informed Channel 7 that each department is working together to prevent the smuggling of drugs or any illegal items into and out of Thailand, with the airport being a critical point of focus.

Phanurat also urged anyone who notices suspicious behaviour from either locals or foreigners to report it to the ONCB via their hotline number, 1386.

In a related report, the ONCB uncovered a secret group on the Telegram app that encourages UK passport holders to smuggle cannabis from Thailand to the UK in exchange for a free trip to Thailand. The gang reportedly offered approximately 450,000 baht to anyone who successfully smuggled the items into the UK.

In response, the UK issued an alert stating that Thailand now become a major hub for illegal cannabis smuggling by air. The UK urged Thailand to collaborate with them to prevent such trafficking.