Five suspects nabbed in anti-drug operations

At about 9.40pm on Friday, police found bags containing two kilograms of crystal meth, or “ice”, on the Ram-Indra Road in Bangkok’s Khan Na Yow district, following reports that a delivery would be made to a Bangkok drug dealer by a courier from the North. No suspects were apprehended.
Two days later, police arrested four drug suspects in an undercover operation in Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai district. They were allegedly in possession of 200,000 methamphetamine tablets and about one kilogram of crystal meth in their possession.
The suspects, who have been charged with possession of illicit drugs with intention to sell, were identified as Arpay Hmeulae, 35, Saifon Kamjad, 22, Nitipong Phan-ngern, 26, and Mg Wai Yan Oo, 18. 
On Monday, police found six sacks containing about 18kg of the herbal recreational drug kratom on a road in Phatthalung province. 
The next day, authorities found 24,600 bottles of cough syrup at the premises of a transportation firm in Songkhla province following a tip-off that drug traders had ordered it for distribution to young people in southern border provinces. Some brands of cough syrups are used as ingredient in illicit drug recipes. 
Also on Tuesday, police arrested Chao Saenyang, 53, in Sing Buri provice, who allegedly had 1.8 million methamphetamine tablets in his possession. The drugs were found hidden under cabbages. 
The Narcotics Suppression Bureau announced the results of their operations at a press conference yesterday. 
According to the bureau, more than Bt346.67-million worth of assets were seized from drug suspects between October 1, 2015, and September 30, 2016. Also confiscated in the same period were 28.8 million methamphetamine tablets, 632.72kg of crystal meth, 43.69kg of heroin, 39.32kg of cocaine and 917kg of dried marijuana. 
From October 1, 2014, to September 30, 2015, asset seizures related to drug cases totalled Bt207.89 million. Over the same period, 40.44 million tablets of methamphetamine, 584.14kg of crystal meth, 56kg of heroin and 4,461kg of dried marijuana were confiscated. 
Acting bureau chief Pol Maj-General Sommai Kongwisaisuk yesterday also pledged to crack down on kratom, a derivative of the tree Mitragyna speciosa, following the latest haul. 
“This type of drug has posed a big problem in southern border provinces,” he said.