Haul is one of the biggest of the year in Songkhla but smugglers remain at large
SONGKHLA: Police seized 1,200 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine worth 120 million baht, destined for Malaysia, after surrounding a house in Na Mom district but the smugglers managed to flee.
Narcotics suppression police and local officers on Friday surrounded the house in tambon Thung Khamin after receiving information that large quantities of crystal methamphetamine or “ice” were being kept there before being smuggled to Malaysia.
When the officers raided the house, they found the drugs stuffed into 24 fertiliser sacks, each containing 50 packs of “ice”.
Of the contents of all the sacks, 900kg of crystal meth were found hidden in a bedroom of the house, 294kg were in the bed of a pickup truck, and another 6kg were hidden in a secret compartment of another pickup.
They also found a freshly dug hole, believed to be intended for hiding drugs, near a makeshift shelter in the compound.
A freshly dug hole is seen near a makeshift shelter in the compound of the house in Songkhla, where large quantities of crystal methamphetamine were seized. (Photo: Assawin Pakkawan)
Before the officers moved in, a group of men who had brought the drugs to the house managed to flee, said the arresting team. The drug haul was one of the largest this year in the southern province.
Earlier, intelligence-gathering officials from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board had obtained information that large quantities of crystal meth would be smuggled from northern Thailand to a southern border area between May 21 and 22 before being smuggled into Malaysia.
Officers from various agencies had been deployed to keep a close watch on the routes in question. When they spotted two suspect pickups heading to tambon Thung Khamin, the officers followed them to the house that led to the seizure of the drugs.
Packs of crystal methamphetamine are found in a secret compartment of a pickup truck. (Photo: Assawin Pakkawan)
Police examine sacks containing illicit drugs. (Photo: Assawin Pakkawan)