Thailand seizes US$38m worth of meth

THAI authorities have seized a massive methamphetamine haul worth almost US$38 million near the Laotian border, officials said yesterday, highlighting the kingdom’s role as a pipeline for drugs flooding through Southeast Asia.

Early yesterday authorities found some 788 kilograms of crystal meth — a high-purity form of the stimulant — in an abandoned pick-up truck in northern Chiang Rai province, the heart of the notorious Golden Triangle drug producing zone.

More than 9 million meth tablets were also found in fertilizer bags inside the vehicle, some 100 meters away from the Mekong River that divides Thailand and Laos.

“Both type of drugs were found in the abandoned pick-up truck... in Wiang Kaen district in Chiang Rai province,” a military official said, requesting anonymity.

He said the drug smugglers had already fled the scene while authorities have detained three Thai men suspected of preparing to move the cache to the next destination.

The Golden Triangle — a remote region where northern Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet — is a base for cartels who churn out huge quantities of opium and meth that are smuggled through porous borders to countries across Asia.

Crystal meth is a stronger form of the drug that sells for around US$60-80 a gram in Thailand.