Confiscation of meth skyrockets in Asia

BANGKOK — Seizures of crystal methamphetamine and methamphetamine pills reached record highs in East and Southeast Asia in 2012, with Burma retaining its status as a major supplier of the illicit drugs, the United Nations said Friday. In its annual report on amphetamine-type stimulants in the region, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said that methamphetamines were the primary or secondary drug of choice in 13 of the 15 Asia-Pacific countries surveyed.

A total of 227 million methamphetamine pills were seized in the region last year — a 59 percent increase from 142 million a year earlier, the report said. It marked a more than sevenfold increase from 2008.

Many of the pills were seized in China (102.2 million), followed by Thailand (95.3 million) and Burma (18.2 million), the agency’s report said. In Thailand, the haul was nearly double the amount seized in 2011 and the second-largest ever recorded.

The 11.6 tons of crystal methamphetamine seized across the region was the highest in a decade and a 12 percent increase from the year before. It included record hauls in Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia and Brunei.