Police say heroin smuggled to Australia by a 26-year-old Thai Airways air hostess was produced by a syndicate in Myanmar before being trafficked through Laos and into northern Thailand. Investigators believe the drugs were later transported across Thailand for overseas distribution, with the latest case leading to fresh arrests and an expanding cross-border investigation.
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The development follows the arrest of the flight attendant, identified only as Ms Mina, at Melbourne Airport on June 25 after she allegedly carried heroin concealed inside elephant tote bags. Thai police have since focused on tracing the supply chain and identifying those responsible for moving the drugs through the country.
Deputy chief of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB), Pol Maj Gen Somboon Thiankhao, said on Sunday that investigators believe the heroin originated in Myanmar before entering Thailand via Chiang Kham district in Phayao province, which borders Laos. He said traffickers used the Laos route to avoid stricter inspections along the direct Thai-Myanmar border.
Pol Maj Gen Somboon said Chiang Kham has become a closely monitored transit point for illicit drugs. He added that recent raids in the district, which resulted in the seizure of millions of methamphetamine pills, reinforced investigators’ assessment that the area is being used to move narcotics destined largely for overseas markets.
Police arrested suspect Uthai Khanapiwat in Phitsanulok on Friday after alleging he had fled following Ms Mina’s arrest. During questioning, he admitted delivering the parcel containing the elephant tote bags to Ms Mina at her condominium in Bangkok’s Bang Na district on June 22 after collecting it, along with other parcels, in Chiang Kham on June 20.
According to investigators, Mr Uthai also admitted making three similar deliveries previously. However, Pol Maj Gen Somboon said officers became suspicious of parts of his statement after discovering he had quickly changed his mobile phone and attempted to dispose of other drugs in his possession following the Melbourne arrest.
Police said the parcels from Phayao had been stored at Mr Uthai’s apartment in Ayutthaya. On June 22, he allegedly hired Atircah Supian to drive him to Ms Mina’s condominium to deliver the parcel intended for her.
A search of the apartment found traces of heroin inside tote bags. Investigators also recovered other discarded bags after Mr Uthai and his friend led officers to a roadside location in Ayutthaya where they said the bags had been dumped previously in an attempt to destroy evidence, according to Pol Lt Gen Theeradej Thamsuthee, deputy commander of the Bangkok Metropolitan Police.
Bangkokpost reported that authorities said the investigation into the trafficking network remains ongoing in both Thailand and Australia as officers continue efforts to identify other members of the alleged smuggling operation.
Picture courtesy of Bangkokpost
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Adapted by ASEAN Now Bangkokpost 6 July 2026