Thailand makes one of its 'largest ever' crystal methamphetamine busts

[webfact]

Thailand makes one of its 'largest ever' crystal methamphetamine busts

 

Thailand police shows one of its largest crystal methamphetamine busts during a news conference in Bangkok, Thailand April 3, 2018. REUTERS/Panu Wongcha-um

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand has made one of its largest crystal methamphetamine busts, seizing 700 million baht (£15.9 million) worth of the drug, police said on Tuesday, as the United Nations warned Southeast Asia was being flooded with illegal drugs from the "Golden Triangle" region.

 

Police said 700 kilograms (1,543 lbs) of the drug, known as ice, was seized on March 28 in southern Chumpon Province and were destined for Malaysia.

 

The drugs were produced in the Golden Triangle region, where the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet. Two Thais and two Malaysians were arrested in connection with the bust.

 

The methamphetamine market has expanded at an alarming rate in East and Southeast Asia. In 2015, experts in several countries in the subregion reported an increase in the use of both crystalline methamphetamine and methamphetamine tablets.

 

Among amphetamines, methamphetamine represents the greatest global health threat, a 2017 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) World Drug report said.

 

"These big seizures are indications that there is a relentless supply pumping out of the Golden Triangle and north Shan to flood Southeast Asian markets and also transit Southeast Asia to high value markets like Australia, New Zealand and potentially further," Jeremy Douglas, the UNODC's chief in Southeast Asia, told Reuters.

 

Police displayed the haul on Tuesday at a government compound north of Bangkok. Other drugs on display included 890 million baht ($28.51 million) worth of illicit drugs, including cocaine, cannabis and ecstasy, seized in various busts between March 25 and April 1.

 

Most of the drugs were produced outside of Thailand and were trafficked through the country en route to Australia, North America and Europe.

 

"The prices we announced are the values in Thailand," Police Lieutenant General Sommai Kongvisaisuk, commander of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau, told reporters.

 

"Once the drugs pass through Thailand the prices will increase," Sommai said, adding that disruptions to supply chains has done little to stall production.

 

"We have intercepted a lot of drugs over the past year ... but the production capacity remains untouched."

 

(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um; Editing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Michael Perry)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-04-03

[taipan1949]

I would be curious how they destroy this stuff? Who "supervises" the destruction and who "supervises" the "supervisor"? Who is to say what they actually destroy is the drugs. Nobody here in the Philippines believes the "police" destroy the drugs, they just burn what looks like the bags of drugs???

[mercman24]

i was a supervisor in a bonded warehouse years ago, i had to stand by with the excise officer to watch as 3 pallets of fine cigars were set fire to, and 6 pallets of fine wine smashed by a JCB (as duty not paid), i still have nightmares about it,,  lol

[JOC]

19 minutes ago, taipan1949 said:

I would be curious how they destroy this stuff? Who "supervises" the destruction and who "supervises" the "supervisor"? Who is to say what they actually destroy is the drugs. Nobody here in the Philippines believes the "police" destroy the drugs, they just burn what looks like the bags of drugs???

You beat me to it....Wonder how much of this bust will hit the streets courtesy of the guys in uniform...?

Illegal drugs are probably on of the biggest earners for the "law-enforcers" here...!!

What we pay at the road blocks are indeed just tea-money compared to the drug-trade....

[keith101]

It would be good if they could stop the flow of cash going back the other way and really hurt these drug gangs where it hurts the most 

[RotMahKid]

I only read about the stuff they catch, it's getting time I read they found some labs in the Golden Triangle region.

 

[overherebc]

1 hour ago, mercman24 said:

i was a supervisor in a bonded warehouse years ago, i had to stand by with the excise officer to watch as 3 pallets of fine cigars were set fire to, and 6 pallets of fine wine smashed by a JCB (as duty not paid), i still have nightmares about it,,  lol

Seen many boxes, not cartons of cigs go into the incinerator in Uk. Edmonton in London.

Edited April 3, 2018 by overherebc

[Bangkokazy]

Well done from the Thailand police.

[webfact]

Swoop by troops and police in Chiang Rai leads to Bt1.7m in drugs seized

By NATTHAWAT LAPING, 
KORNKAMON AKSORNDECH 
THE NATION 

 

 

NAVY TROOPS, police and district officials seized 9.4 million methamphetamine pills and 788 kilograms of crystal meth, or “ice”, in Chiang Rai’s Wiang Kaen district on Monday night.
 

Acting on a tip-off, the officials found the drugs on a Toyota pick-up truck with Bangkok licence plates at the Thai Charoen Co compound in Tambon Muang Yai at 10.30pm. The drugs, said to be worth Bt1.7 million in street value, were found during a search of the vehicle. No arrests have yet been made.

 

In Bangkok, national police chief Pol General Chakthip Chaijinda told a press conference about separate drug busts carried out at various provinces between March 25 and April 1. 

 

Chakthip said police had apprehended 11 suspects in 11 drug busts, which saw officers seize a total of 1,783,263 methamphetamine pills, 703 kilograms of “ice”, 1,380 kilograms of marijuana, 1,471 grams of cocaine, 90 ecstasy pills, and 0.6 gram of ketamine.

 

These drugs were said to be worth Bt890 million on the streets. Officers seized assets worth Bt4.9 million from suspects, including a six-wheel truck, nine cars, four guns with ammunition, 11 mobile phones and Bt87,220 cash. 

 

Chakthip said Thai authorities were continuously cracking down on drug trafficking and had received cooperation from neighbouring countries, including Myanmar and Laos. He said gangs usually moved drugs from the North and Northeast through the Central region during holidays. 

 

Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) commissioner Pol Lt-General Sommai Kongwisaisuk said many cases saw illicit drugs smuggled from a neighbouring country such as Laos. Various methods were used to avoid detection, including via cross-border trekking groups of armed men, or chicken or cow carcasses stuffed with drugs.

 

He said a single “yaba” (methamphetamine) pill worth Bt1 in a neighbouring country could fetch Bt200 in Thailand, and Bt500 in a third country. One kilogram of “ice” worth Bt1 million could fetch 1,000 times that price in a third country, he claimed.

 

Sommai cited the Monday-night case in which 703 kilograms of “ice” was seized as an indication of the non-stop production of narcotics. He said the drugs were mostly smuggled from a neighbouring country through Thailand’s North, Northeastern, Central and Southern regions to reach Malaysia, which was a hub for further distribution to other countries such as Australia and South Korea.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30342402

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-04-04

[gk10002000]

As an engineer, I am very curious just exactly how big a manufacturing operation this is?  I watched  a few episodes of "Breaking Bad' but I have no idea if any of that was realistic.  How big an operation is this?  A few vats of stuff cooking away?  A plant drawing 100 megawatts for heating and processing and mixing?  Is this stuff made a few pounds a day and they just wait and stock pile it up?  I would think a drone with off the shelf chemical sniffing sensors could easily detect a large scale manufacturing facility, or not.  Never mind the raw ingredients and how many, and from where, etc.  Is this stuff like Madame Curie and one has to process tons to get a few grams? 

Edited April 3, 2018 by gk10002000
changes

[NCC1701A]

people who produce and distribute ice should be executed. 

[lamyai3]

2 hours ago, gk10002000 said:

I watched  a few episodes of "Breaking Bad'

I recommend you go back and watch the whole thing (and the Better Call Saul spinoff). Mass production does  seem to be extremely easy and cheap, though the Heisenberg Blue was no doubt just a plot device.

 

Interestingly, I read an interview with the director, and he said in hindsight his only regret after making the series was Jesse Pinkman's teeth, far too healthy looking for a serious meth addict. 

[Get Real]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

be worth Bt1.7 million in street value

I guess somebody needs a calculator. 9,4 million pills??? Not even 1 baht per pill??? That´s a great bargain.

[Lupatria]

1 hour ago, NCC1701A said:

people who produce and distribute ice should be executed. 

Up to which rank?

[Borzandy]

Thailand number one again.

[RobFord]

Very good read for those interested.

 

The kingpins are the United Wa State Army (UWSA), a 25,000-strong militia known as Asia's most heavily-armed drug dealers who boast their own autonomous territories on the border with China and have close links with Beijing.
 

http://wap.business-standard.com/article/international/world-anti-drugs-day-myanmar-thailand-torch-1-bn-of-seized-drugs-117062600221_1.html

[sammieuk1]

Follow the money seize the bling and its all over when a short fat man sings. 

[kcpattaya]

Well done! Get rid of the shit and their carriers that cause so many problems ...

[realenglish1]

Holly (%&$) That us a massive seizure. Should put a dent in the drug trade for a while As Trump would say

 

This is HUGE

[hkt83100]

5 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

I recommend you go back and watch the whole thing (and the Better Call Saul spinoff). Mass production does  seem to be extremely easy and cheap, though the Heisenberg Blue was no doubt just a plot device.

 

Interestingly, I read an interview with the director, and he said in hindsight his only regret after making the series was Jesse Pinkman's teeth, far too healthy looking for a serious meth addict. 

One of the best series of the past years I must say.

[rdhowell]

22 hours ago, webfact said:

"We have intercepted a lot of drugs over the past year ... but the production capacity remains untouched."

"Well done by the Thailand police" ?

How amusing. Keep dreaming.

 

"people who produce and distribute ice should be executed".

 

No, the people in Big Pharma and many others in the "medical establishment" should be lined up first. There won't be enough lethal injection drugs left after that. Then consideration can be made  for these others. You have the cart before the horse.

 

[Eaglekott]

On 4/3/2018 at 3:01 PM, taipan1949 said:

would be curious how they destroy this stuff?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTftmdoRIEY

[Sir Dude]

The only way to fix this problem is to do it China style, like when they mobilized about 25 army divisions just north of Vietnam like 10-15 years ago to retake like 800 square km of chaotic lawlessness areas. Maybe Burma and the Thais can do the same...short of doing this, then there will be no answer to the Wa State Army profiting from such activities with impunity to do what they like. Obviously there is no will to do it as too many profit from the misery of others. Shame.  

[Banana7]

Jane's reported in 2001 that the  United Wa State Army ( UWSA) had acquired HN-5N Surface-to-air missile (SAMs) from China as part of the build-up near the Thai border where they were reported to be operating 40-50 laboratories manufacturing yaa baa.

 

Jane's also reports that by 2012, Chinese support had increased to the point of supplying armoured vehicles such as the 6 x 6 PTL-02 assault gun being sighted in Pangkham. On 29 April 2013, Jane's IHS reported that several Mil Mi-17 helicopters armed with TY-90 air-to-air missiles were supplied to UWSA by China. In November 2014, Jane's further reported that the UWSA have acquired the FN-6 Surface-to-air missile to supplant the HN-5N in service. In 2015 IHS Jane's reported that UWSA members had been photographed training with Chinese Type 96 122 mm howitzers and HJ-8 ATGMs.

 

If the above is true, it will be a very big expensive battle to eliminate the drugs in the UWSA controlled region.

 

Since this is 2018, the battle could be manageable. Now if somebody acquired say 200-300 Tomahawk missiles, lots of intelligence from friendly satellites, I imagine 80% of the labs could be out of production in one night. But first, there needs to an agreement with Myanmar and China that all labs need to be eliminated.

Edited April 4, 2018 by Banana7

[InMyShadow]

I would be curious how they destroy this stuff? Who "supervises" the destruction and who "supervises" the "supervisor"? Who is to say what they actually destroy is the drugs. Nobody here in the Philippines believes the "police" destroy the drugs, they just burn what looks like the bags of drugs???

Snap out of it and be grateful for the lives saved. You sound like you would have kept the lot,!

[rosst]

On 04/04/2018 at 6:45 AM, NCC1701A said:

people who produce and distribute ice should be executed. 

President Duterte thinks so too, and pushers/dealers 

[observer90210]

somebody wearing a uniform at some place at the top or the botton,  is going to make some juicy cash on this heist ?....or maybe not ? ... but the doubt persists...

[kickstart]

1 hour ago, observer90210 said:

somebody wearing a uniform at some place at the top or the botton,  is going to make some juicy cash on this heist ?....or maybe not ? ... but the doubt persists...

A Moo-Bann, village was built near here on a greenfield site total of 25-30 detached houses, a good few million baht investments, the guy who built it all, and brought the land, is/was an army general .

Did not know army generals got paid so well.

[Henrik Andersen]

I still hope we can see all of it get destroyed 

But who financial all this drugs why never cash the rich people behind this??? 

 

[geriatrickid]

I to worry about the disposal of these chemicals. However, not for the same reason.

These products are considered hazardous waste and give off serious toxic fumes and byproducts when burnt. Their residue poisons water tables and can literally kill the earth. Tt cannot "just be burnt". The incinerator needs the filters and "scrubbers" to deal with the toxic byproducts.