Drug use still on the rise
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THigh: Low: +35° +27° he prevalence of drug use across the island is continuing to rise, the Phuket Provincial Narcotics Prevention and Suppression Center committee has confirmed.
From October 2023 through March 2024 there were 1,335 arrests in 78 drug cases in Phuket (not including kratom and marijuana), an increase of 6.21% on the same period a year earlier Phuket Vice Governor Sattha Thongkam was told at a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall on Apr 30.
Present for the meeting was Capt Pongsakorn Itsombat of the Royal Thai Navy, representing the Phuket branch of the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc), which serves as the political arm of the Thai military.
Also present were officers from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board Region 8 branch as well as other relevant antidrug enforcement agencies.
In March 2024 alone there were 255 arrests in 86 drug cases (not including kratom and marijuana), marking an increase of 50.89% from February, officers at the meeting confirmed.
“The drug situation in Phuket continues to spread. Most drug cases involved amphetamines and crystal meth (ya ice),” said an official report
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High: Low: of the meeting.
The most common type of drugs illegally used were amphetamine (ya bah), followed by ya ice, heroin and cocaine, respectively.
The areas with the highest incidence of drug use were Muang Phuket District, followed by Thalang District and Kathu District, respectively, the report noted.
Most drug arrests were that of general contractors and construction workers.
The information reported at the meeting was marked as accurate as of April 30, 2024.
The efforts to continue crackdowns on illegal drug use would continue while the committee explored other policy guidelines to help reduce illegal drug use on the island, including treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts, the report noted. +37° +28°
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The situation report on drug use in Phuket came the same day that a a 29-year-old British man was arrested at Phuket International airport for attempting to bring into Thailand a small bag of cocaine that was hidden in his passport.
Immigration officers at the airport reported that the man was arrested in the Arrivals Hall at the airport at about 7pm on May 2.
The small plastic bag containing the cocaine weighed 0.42 grams (including the bag), airport immigration noted in their report.
The man, from Enfield in north London, was placed under arrest and handed over to Sakhu Police.
He has been charged with bringing a Category 2 narcotic into the country and illegal possession of the drug.