Lao narcotics kingpin Xaysana gets life imprisonment
The Criminal Court yesterday sentenced drug ring leader, Xaysana Keopimpha, to life in prison for smuggling 1.2 methamphetamine pills into Thailand.
The defendant was initially sentenced to death but the penalty was commuted due to his cooperation with the court.
The 43-year Lao national was arrested at Suvarnabhumi airport on Jan 19, 2017 after arriving on a flight from Phuket by the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB), which had been tracking his activities.
Police were on his trail over the 1.2 million speed pills which were smuggled into Thailand through Nong Khai and seized on Sept 30, 2016.
Police arrested some members of Mr Xaysana’s network on Oct 1, 2016 and they implicated him in the smuggling of the pills which were reportedly destined for southern Thailand and then Malaysia.
The prosecution indicted him in April last year and he pleaded not guilty during the arraignment.
According to the court’s ruling, the prosecu- tion had solid witnesses to prove the defendant’s involvement with drug smuggling.
Witnesses for the prosecution were police officers who testified based on their anti-drug operations leading to his arrest and that they had no personal grudges against the defendant. The court also said the statements given by another four suspects against the defendant were consistent and detailed.
Mr Xaysana was also indicted in another drug-related case with two others, Chumphon Phanomprai and Ratchapol Ratsahapolpakorn, in connection with 3.38 million seized methamphetamine pills.
The charges covered a number of episodes from July 2015 to December 2016, when they allegedly smuggled the drugs from Laos to Thailand via Nakhon Phanom, and then distributed them.
The lawsuit was filed with the Criminal Court on July 26 last year.
Since his arrest at Suvarnabhumi airport, Mr Xaysana has been detained without bail. He was taken to the court yesterday to hear the ruling from the Central Correctional Institution for Drug Addicts.