Police Seize 110Kg of Crystal Meth in Hotel Car Park

On Thursday, police recovered 110 kilograms of crystal meth and other drugs from a hotel car park in downtown Bangkok, and detained two traffickers. The drugs were expected to be sold in Bangkok and adjacent areas during the upcoming Songkran event.

On Thursday morning, a load of crystal meth and 60kg of ketamine was discovered hidden in a Honda H-RV parked at a hotel in the Rong Muang area of Pathumwan district.

Police extended the investigation, resulting in the seizure of more drugs — 7,000 speed pills, 1.4kg of heroin, 8kg of crystal meth or “ice”, 1.5kg of ketamine, and 2,000 ecstasy pills — at a nearby condo unit, according to Pol Gen Kitrat Panphet, the acting national police chief, who led senior officers to the hotel.

Officers from the Patrol and Special Operations Division, or 191 police, and the Metropolitan Police Bureau carried out the operation.

After discovering that drugs would be delivered to the hotel for others to pick up, officers went to the parking lot and discovered the two suspects.

The couple admitted to transporting the drugs from Saraburi province to the hotel.

One of the suspects, Khwan Arsaphorn, 35, drove the automobile that contained the drugs. He told authorities that this was his third delivery, and he was paid 50,000 baht for each.

Khwan Ploysrisuai, 25, was detained as he arrived on a motorcycle with another man to pick up the drugs at the car park at 7 a.m. The third suspect managed to escape.

Pol Gen Kitrat stated that police were pursuing a warrant to arrest the third suspect.

According to a police investigation, the recovered drugs were intended to be sold to Thais and foreigners at numerous tourist attractions in Bangkok and the surrounding areas during the Songkran holiday.

Police Seize 22Kg of Heroin

Yesterday, police apprehended a 70-year-old man after discovering 22Kg of heroin concealed into sunscreen boxes at a postal delivery counter in Nong Khai. The drugs were apparently heading to South Korea via Bangkok.

Pol Lt Gen Sarayut Sanguanphokhai, commissioner of Provincial Police Region 4, believes Somphong Lothisen is a member of an international narcotics trafficking group.

Investigators had previously detained other members of the gang and seized cocaine bound for South Korea. They later discovered that more drugs were to be transported from Tha Bo, near the border with Laos in Nong Khai, to a gang member in Bangkok before being transferred outside.

Officers closely watched suspects’ movements in the northeastern province. When Mr Somphong arrived to a local Home Fresh store in Tha Bo, cops arrived and requested to inspect his package.

The search revealed 213 sunscreen boxes packed with heroin. Pol Lt Gen Sarayut claimed the pills weighed a total of 22 kilogrammes.

The 70-year-old defendant was charged with illegal possession of heroin for sale. He was turned over to the Tha Bo police station for judicial proceedings.

During questioning, Mr Somphong told police that he was paid 4,000 baht by a person in Laos to deliver the box to a recipient in Bangkok.

Officers intend to continue their investigation in order to apprehend anyone implicated.