Rat catchers nabbed in Khon Kaen with 300,000 speed pills

A couple of drug peddlers, masquerading as farm rat catchers, were apprehended in Khon Kaen with a cache of over 300,000 speed pills. The couple, identified as 41 year old Jinda Thaochalee and his 36 year old wife Rungthip Sakunphon, were nabbed in Ban Fang district and tried to bribe the police with 500,000 baht for their release.

Local police officers on patrol first spotted Jinda acting suspiciously in a black pickup truck parked behind Wiwektham forest temple in tambon Nong Bua. He claimed to be on a mission to hunt farm rats, as evidenced by the rat-catching tools found in his vehicle. However, his nervous demeanour raised the officers’ suspicions.

A subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered 20,000 concealed speed pills. Thaochalee confessed that the drugs were meant for delivery to another dealer. He was then escorted to Ban Fang Police Station for further questioning.

During interrogation, Jinda revealed the existence of an additional stash of speed pills at his rented residence, where his wife was looking after them. In a subsequent search of the property, a whopping 320,000 pills were found.

In a desperate bid to secure their release, Thaochalee attempted to bribe the arresting officers with 500,000 baht. The officers feigned acceptance of the bribe, only to apprehend him and his wife as soon as the money changed hands.

Jinda confessed that he procured drugs from a trafficker in Laos, typically in batches of 400,000 pills. He would then distribute the drugs to various locations, marking the drop-off points with rat-catching tools as a signal for other dealers.

He disclosed that he was paid 200,000 baht per delivery and had completed three such deliveries. The couple has been detained for further legal proceedings, while the police continue their investigation to nab other involved parties, reported Bangkok Post.

In related news, a 35 year old convicted drug offender escaped custody at the provincial court last week but was later apprehended at a resort in the northeastern province of Khon Kaen. The accused, Ratchaphon Khiannok, was arrested with his accomplice, 20 year old Palangwatchara Khunsinchairat.

Acting on information that the pair were holed up in a resort in the Sila district of Mueang, Khon Kaen, police swiftly surrounded the resort.