CHIANG RAI – Police in Mae Sai seized a large haul of crystal meth after a pickup truck sped through a checkpoint and was later abandoned on a road. Officers found 240 kilograms of ice (crystal meth) hidden inside the vehicle, but the driver escaped into the darkness.
Mae Sai police said they received information that a drug trafficking group would move narcotics from the Thai-Myanmar border area in Mae Sai into central Thailand.
The route was believed to use a secondary road branching off Phahonyothin Road toward the Nam Cham and Nong O area in Pong Pha Subdistrict. Officers were deployed to monitor and intercept any suspicious vehicles.
At about 1:30 a.m., officers spotted a gray Toyota Hilux Revo with Chiang Rai plates traveling on the route that matched the tip. When it reached the Nam Cham village area (Moo 5, Pong Pha), police signaled the driver to stop for inspection.
The driver instead accelerated, forced through the checkpoint, and fled. Police chased the pickup at close range.
A short time later, still within the Nam Cham area, the driver stopped, left the truck in the middle of the road, got out, and ran off. Police believe the driver used familiarity with the area and the darkness to escape.
Officers searched the abandoned pickup and found seven woven sacks in the vehicle. Inside was crystal meth with a total weight of 240.1 kilograms.
They also found the vehicle keys left in the truck, along with copies of the vehicle manual, purchase-related documents, one mobile phone, a receipt, and other paperwork.
Police said they have filed charges against the fleeing suspect for possessing Category 1 narcotics with intent to sell, as part of a commercial trafficking offense that could spread drugs among the public. Investigators are continuing efforts to identify and arrest the driver.
