Bangkok –
The Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) has announced four major drug busts nationwide with multiple types of drugs seized totaling over 19 million baht in value.
The cases were revealed at a press briefing this morning, September 29, led by assistant national police chief Police Lieutenant General Wissanu Prasartthong-osod. One involved a foreigner who was reportedly smuggling thousands of dollars of MDMA from Germany to sell locally in the Kingdom.
In the first case, Athitaya Kingmala, 36, was arrested at a gas station in Ubon Ratchathani following an arrest warrant from the Criminal Court for allegedly possessing and selling marijuana illegally.
Athitaya was reportedly one of several local drug dealers in a local network which had been smuggling marijuana from provinces in Northeastern Thailand to neighboring countries over the past year. Approximately 1.5 thousand kilograms of marijuana were also seized at the scene.
In the second case, Putscha Ariyawattanangkul, 22, and Satchukorn Buranawongsawat, 40, were captured at a condominium in Bangkok with 700 grams of Amphetamine, 160 tablets of MDMA, 4,000 tablets of Methamphetamine, and 12 cash cards.
The raid followed a previous arrest of their friend in May, which revealed that Satchukorn was reportedly operating an online drug selling business via Line account. The couple was in police custody for allegedly possessing and selling drugs in Catagory 1 (Heroin, Amphetamine, Methamphetamine, MDMA).
In the third case, Supon Pannawong, 32, was arrested with 2 kilograms of Amphetamine while he was discreetly preparing to send a parcel box of drugs abroad at an international postal office in Chiang Rai.
The arrest followed a tip-off that a local was planning to send a package of drugs to Israel before officials spotted Supon carrying the suspicious package and walking to the courier.
In the last case, two Thai nationals Patchara Lhakampiang, 37, and Nittaya Wansook, 40, and foreigner Mikelly John, 32, were arrested in Bangkok with 4,000 tablets of MDMA after allegedly importing and selling drug in the Kingdom.
The bureau officials stated that the foreigner, whose nationality was not disclosed, would import MDMA pills by hiding them in a parcel box from Germany before hiring two Thai females to help operate his illegal business.
Police Lieutenant General Wissanu further said that drug smugglers have shifted their methods and selling behaviors to online channels during the Covid-19 pandemics. The drugs were concealed inside unsuspicious goods such as whey protein packages or soap bars before sending them to customers.
He told the associated press: “The NSB has now asked for cooperation with parcel delivery operators nationwide by strictly checking the individual senders’ ID card and taking their pictures for their identity confirmation.”
“The senders’ and receivers’ names must also be clearly written and specified and the delivery officers should immediately notify the authorities if they witnessed anyone with suspicious behavior.”
