Police seize over 1 billion meth pills, assets worth 12 billion baht

Thai police have successfully dismantled a major drug trafficking network, seizing over one billion meth pills and other narcotics throughout the year. Assets worth more than 12 billion baht have also been confiscated.

Yesterday, October 24, Assistant Commissioner-General Nirandorn Lueamsri, and Somboon Thiankaew, Deputy Commissioner of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB), announced the arrest of key figures involved in the drug trade.

Police from Division 3 arrested two suspects with 600 kilogrammes of crystal meth. The arrests took place in Chaiyaphum province and later expanded to Saraburi province.

Further investigations revealed that drugs were being transported from the northeastern border areas into inner regions. On October 20, police tracked the movements of suspects from Kalasin province, heading towards Nakhon Ratchasima province.

Subsequently, another target vehicle and a van driven by were intercepted at a petrol station on Mittraphap Road. Inside the van, officers found 6.8 million methamphetamine pills.

In another case, on July 6, police from Division 2 arrested a suspect with 500 kilogrammes of crystal meth in Sakon Nakhon province. After further investigation, police discovered a suspicious vehicle with a changed license plate in Nakhon Phanom province on October 20. The next day, the vehicle was found and a subsequent search revealed four million methamphetamine pills.

No escape

In a separate incident, police from Division 2 arrested three suspects with 1.5 million methamphetamine pills at a petrol station in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province. Continued surveillance led to the discovery of a network transporting drugs to central regions. On October 21, officers tracked a target vehicle to Loei province and eventually apprehended the suspect with 300 kilogrammes of crystal meth and a .38 calibre revolver with 55 bullets.

Another significant bust involved the arrest of two suspects with 6.7 million methamphetamine pills, 1,000 ecstasy pills, 10 blocks of MDMA weighing one kilogramme, 1,400 Five Five pills, and seven M26 grenades at a resort in Phetchabun province.

On October 15, police followed three target vehicles from Nong Khai and Bueng Kan provinces to a resort in Phetchabun. They arrested four suspects with one million methamphetamine pills, 160 kilogrammes of crystal meth, and 40 kilogrammes of ketamine.

In another operation, police from Division 4 arrested two suspects with 549 grammes of crystal meth. Further investigation identified target vehicles travelling from southern regions to Kanchanaburi province. At a checkpoint on Saeng Chu To Road, officers found 300 kilogrammes of crystal meth in the second vehicle and detained all suspects.

Overall, from October 1 to October 20, the NSB arrested 29 suspects in 12 major cases. Officers seized over 12 million methamphetamine pills, more than 1,300 kilogrammes of crystal meth, and 40 kilogrammes of ketamine, along with properties valued at 92 million baht.

The crackdown, which started in September, revealed that suspects were part of a network specialising in drug transportation from northern and northeastern borders to central regions, including Bangkok and its vicinities.

Throughout 2024, the NSB has handled 260,506 drug-related cases, resulting in the arrest of 268,679 individuals, mainly aged 30 to 50. The confiscated drugs include over one billion methamphetamine pills, 25.4 tonnes of crystal meth, 1.6 tonnes of heroin, and 5.6 tonnes of ketamine, with assets worth over 12 billion baht seized, reported KhaoSod.