Nine arrested in 1.5 tonne crystal meth seizure at Thai pier

A total of nine individuals have been apprehended during a crackdown in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand, resulting in the confiscation of 1.5 tonnes of crystal meth. The Office of Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) reported that the drugs were seized as they were being readied for transportation on a boat, ultimately intending to smuggle them out of the country.

The operation occurred at Mai Khao pier in Tha Sala district, where local police collaborated with officials to prevent the crystal meth drug shipment. During the raid, authorities detained the individuals as they unloaded the 1.5 tonnes of drugs from two vehicles. According to their testimony, the crystal meth was meant to be transferred to a boat bound for other countries, Bangkok Post reported.

An inside source suggested that the suspects’ network had successfully smuggled large quantities of drugs out of Thailand on at least three previous occasions. This particular crackdown was initiated when local authorities received a tip from the intended recipient country, claiming that a significant shipment of crystal meth was scheduled to be smuggled from Mai Khao pier.

The ONCB stated that the network deliberately planned the smuggling attempt just before election day, anticipating that local authorities would be preoccupied with securing election facilities. Consequently, they presumably assumed their illicit operation would go unnoticed.

The ongoing investigation is working to identify and apprehend other network members involved in this smuggling operation. Authorities are examining evidence collected from the boat, with hopes of uncovering valuable information that could lead them to more suspects involved in the illegal enterprise.

Two weeks ago, Police busted a woman in Phuket with 5 kilograms of crystal meth. The Commander of Border Patrol Police Region 4, Pol. Maj. Gen. Somkun Kanchana-Udomkan, announced the arrest yesterday.

Officers had received a tip-off that a consignment of drugs would be delivered in front of a durian shop on Wichit Songkram Road in the Kathu district. The officers waited outside of the shop and arrested the woman when she arrived on her red Phuket-registered Honda PCX motorbike. Read more about the best HERE.