Law Enforcement from Mekong Nations Unite as Drug Trafficking Worsens in the Golden Triangle

CHIANG RAI – Law enforcement agencies from Thailand, China, Myanmar and Laos will once again join together to boost measures against drug trafficking, following the worsening situation in northern Thailand.

The drugs being carried through the Golden Triangle bore the same characteristics with pills imprinted with a symbol “Y1” or “999” – suggesting they came from the same source, the four nations’ authorities will jointly increase prevention and suppression measures, Provincial Police Region 5 chief Pol Maj-General Montri Sambunyanont said on Sunday.

Maj-General Montri’s comment was made at a press conference in Chiang Rai province about police’s drug sweep during the New Year holidays. National Police deputy commissioner Pol General Chalermkiat Srivorakan presided over the conference.

Chalermkiat highlighted a case in which a batch of more than 2 million methamphetamine pills were confiscated in Chiang Rai’s Mae Chan district on the night of January 3 from a white Isuzu pickup truck carrying fruit crates that were spotted as suspicious in tambon Sri Kham. The truck driver, later identified as Wiroj Nongluck, 46 from Sukhothai’s Sri Satchanalai district, crashed the truck in tambon Chan Chwa Tai and escaped.

Police found 2,080,000 meth pills, most of them carrying the “999” logo while some pills carried a logo showing a red horse, in sacks hidden under the crates.

Police have secured an arrest warrant for Wiroj and frozen his assets worth Bt12 million, Chalermkiat said.

By Natthawat Laping
The Nation