The Pha Muang Task Force in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai, seized 1.1 million methamphetamine pills after a firefight with drug runners early Saturday morning.
Lt. Col. Kittakorn Chanthra, Deputy Commander of the Pha Muang Task Force, told reporters soldiers clashed with a drug trafficking gang at approximately 5:00 am in Ban Pa Sang Ngam, Village 6, Koh Chang Subdistrict, Mae Sai District, Chiang Rai Province.
The soldier ordered a group of 3 to 4 men to stop, but instead, they chose to open fire to clear their escape route before abandoning the drugs they were carrying for ease of escape.
He said an inspection of the abandoned belongings revealed that they contained Category 1 narcotics (methamphetamine) in 6 boxes of instant noodles, 200,000 pills per box (5 boxes) and 100,000 pills per box (1 box), totaling about 1,100,000 pills.
No members of the gang were injured or killed, so the soldiers sent the evidence to Mae Sai Police Station for further legal action.
Lt. Col. Kittakorn said the Pha Muang Task Force has ramped up border security after flooding in Chiang Rai to prevent the influx of drugs from reaching inner regions.
The Pha Muang Task Force is responsible for securing northern Thailand’s borders. It covers 24 districts across six provinces: Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Phayao, Nan, Uttaradit, and Phitsanulok. The monitored border is 933 kilometers long.
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