PHUKET – Thai officers arrested 60-year-old American Tyler Trong Luong at Phuket International Airport on the evening of July 16, 2025, after finding 6.6 kilograms of heroin hidden in his luggage. Luong was set to fly to France with connecting flights through Doha and Brussels.
Police from several departments, including the Tourist Police, Customs, and Narcotics Suppression Bureau, took part in the operation. This arrest again points to Thailand’s ongoing struggle against international drug smuggling.
Thai authorities began tracking Luong after a tip from overseas police. He arrived in Thailand on July 8, flying in from Tokyo to Suvarnabhumi Airport before heading to Phuket. On the day he planned to leave, airport staff flagged his checked suitcase during an X-ray scan.
Officers searched his bag and found 10 boxes of Coffee Mate creamer, each packed with heroin wrapped in yellow tape.
Luong told police he did not know about the drugs, saying a French contact had asked him to bring the luggage to France. Thai police remain doubtful about his story and are looking for others who might have helped with what they call an “open smuggling attempt.”
Charges and What’s Next for the American
According to the Phuket News, Luong faces serious drug charges under Thai law: trying to export heroin and possessing illegal drugs. Thai narcotics laws carry tough sentences, including possible life in prison or, in rare cases, the death penalty for large shipments or repeat offenders.
Police transferred Luong to Sakhu Police Station for further processing while they look into the case for wider links.
Luong’s case is just one in a series of recent drug busts involving foreign nationals at Thai airports.
In February 2025, police arrested 65-year-old American Melba Sharp at Phuket International Airport, who tried to smuggle 4.3 kilograms of meth hidden in bedding sets bound for Singapore. The drugs, valued at 1.29 million baht, were picked up during a routine X-ray scan.
A month later, in March 2025, three British and two American travellers were caught at Chiang Mai International Airport with nearly 120 kilograms of cannabis. Since Thailand changed its cannabis laws in 2022, police have noted a jump in smuggling cases, with more than 800 suspects caught and over 9 tonnes of cannabis seized recently.
Thailand has long been a key route for drugs like heroin and meth coming from Myanmar. In 1993, British teacher Sandra Gregory was arrested while trying to take 89 grams of heroin through Bangkok’s Don Muang Airport. She spent four years in Lard Yao prison before being moved to the UK and later pardoned.
In 2020, police caught seven men in Chiang Mai and Bangkok who were part of a Nepalese-Indian trafficking ring moving 15.5 kilograms of heroin to Hong Kong. The group used couriers who swallowed drug capsules to try to get past airport checks.
Thailand’s Efforts Against Drug Smuggling
Thai authorities have stepped up their fight against drug trafficking at major airports like Phuket, Suvarnabhumi, and Chiang Mai. The Customs Department reported seizing 1.72 tonnes of meth in the 2025 fiscal year, worth more than 515 million baht, along with heroin and cocaine in 151 incidents.
Pol Lt Gen Saksira Pueak-am, head of the Tourist Police, stressed the value of working with international partners. He said information from foreign police agencies is often crucial, and Thai officers are focused on protecting the country’s borders and breaking up trafficking groups.
Luong’s arrest is a clear warning to anyone thinking about moving drugs in or out of Thailand, whether they know what they are carrying or not. With strong screening systems and help from other countries, Thailand remains a tough place for drug traffickers.
As the case continues, police are tracking where the heroin came from and searching for any links to global smuggling rings. For now, Luong is in custody, waiting to find out what happens next as Thai authorities keep up their fight against drugs.
