Thailand seizes large haul of Europe-bound drugs with M’sia as suspected transit

BANGKOK: In yet another crippling blow to international drug syndicates, Thai authorities intercepted a consignment of drugs bound for a European country by pre- empting a plan to use Malaysia as a springboard.

The drugs comprising 1.2 million ‘Yaba’ (Crazy) pills, made from a type of methamphetamine drug, and 1.1 tonnes of ganja were seized from a small lorry about 3pm ( local time) in the Banmor district, Saraburi province yesterday.

At the time of the seizure, the drugs were enroute to Hatyai in southern Thailand.

“We believe the drugs were meant to be smuggled into Malaysia from Hatyai and from there ( Malaysia), it was to be sent to a third country.

“We have not ruled out the probability the drugs were targeted at a European country upon reaching Malaysia, where its price could be tripled or quadrupled,” a high ranking source told Bernama yesterday.

He said four men, aged between 42 and 54 were detained to facilitate investigations into an international drug network with European links.

According to him, the authorities stopped the lorry in Saraburi, located in central Thailand following intelligence information on an attempt by an international drug syndicate to smuggle drugs from north to southern Thailand.

The authorities, said the source, had also been tracking one of the four suspects since his release from jail in June last year.

“We received information the group was trying to ferry drugs from northeastern Thailand to Hatyai and made the move on the four man yesterday,” said the source. — Bernama