Narathiwat cigarette smugglers burned by boat raid
Smugglers in Narathiwat are feeling the burn after enforcement agencies seized over Bt4 million in contraband cigarettes from boats moored on the river that marks the border with Malaysia.
A team of police, soldiers and customs officials seized two boats in Tak Bai district on Sunday. Inside they discovered 287,000 cigarettes packed and ready for delivery to the Malaysian side of the river.
The raid came after officials were tipped off that a consignment of illegal tobacco was being smuggled from Thailand to a city in Malaysia's Kelantan just over the border.
The two boats were seized in the Pulanibong community of Jehe subdistrict and impounded at the Tak Bai Customs House.
Customs officials checked the boat registration numbers in a bid to track down the owners, who will be charged with concealing, selling and/or smuggling controlled items.
