PHUKET – A 65-year-old woman from the United States was arrested at the Phuket Airport after customs officers discovered over four kilograms of crystal meth in her luggage. At the same time, she prepared to board a flight to Singapore.
Police at Sakhu station in Thalang district, Phuket, searched Melba Sharp’s suitcase on Sunday night at the Scoot Airlines check-in counter at Phuket airport. They found four packages of crystal meth hidden within four sets of packaged bed sheets weighing 4.3 kilograms.
Officers became suspicious when the linen felt unusually heavy and investigated further by unwrapping the items.
Ms. Sharp, a California resident, was set to fly to Singapore on Scoot Airways flight TR653.
According to Phuket police chief Pol Col Salan Santisasanakul, authorities had been tipped off about a passenger attempting to smuggle drugs through the airport. After reviewing the airline’s passenger list, they turned to the American traveller.
Ms. Sharp was detained at Sakhu police station in Phuket on suspicion of drug smuggling. Authorities said had she been caught in Singapore, she would have faced the death penalty.
Drug-related offences in Thailand are treated as severe crimes with strict penalties, especially for drug trafficking. The Narcotics Act B.E. 2522 (1979) (NCA) organizes drugs into five categories. Violations under this law include illegal possession, use, production, and distribution of drugs.
Category 1 drugs cover highly dangerous substances like heroin, methamphetamine, dihydroetorphine, ketobemidone, methaqualone, and methylone. For general possession, penalties range from 1 to 10 years in prison, fines between 20,000 and 200,000 THB, or both.
Selling drugs or possessing them with intent to distribute carries harsher consequences, including 4 years in prison up to the death penalty, fines from 80,000 to 5,000,000 THB, or both.
