Major drug dealers busted

THALANG: Acting on a tip-off, police yesterday arrested Thanakrit Channum and his wife Aroon, and Rorchad Utsaha, and seized 11,720 tablets of ya bah (methampthetamine) with a street vale of around 1.75 million baht. Thalang police had been informed that a lot of ya bah was circulating in Baan Pru Somparn and that one of the traffickers was a police officer. The Commander of the Phuket Provincial Police, Pol Maj Gen Kongpol Suwannaraks, then ordered officers to investigate and arrest the culprits. The investigation led officers to a married couple who, police ascertained, had been buying ya bah from other provinces and then selling it in the village to dealers who would in turn distribute the pills to other parts of Phuket. They also found that the husband, Thanakrit, was masquerading as a police officer; when they apprehended him and Rorchard in a car in Baan Pru Somparn, Thanakrit was dressed in clothes similar to those worn by the police. In the car were 85 tablets of ya bah. The two were taken to Thalang police station for questioning. Police later raided Rorchard’s home, where they found a further 35 tablets of ya bah. Today, officers went to the hotel room in Koh Kaew where Thanakrit was staying with Aroon, and found the main haul – 11,600 tablets of ya bah hidden in the ceiling of the adjacent room. In addition to seizing the drugs, police confiscated the Honda City car used by the two men, a shotgun and 100 shells, one capsule of heroin, 162,500 baht in cash and a money transfer order for 600,000 baht. All three were charged with possession and trafficking in drugs, while Thanakit was also charged with illegal possession of a firearm.